The latest report on alcohol and other drug treatment services
in Australia, released today by the Australian Institute of Health
and Welfare (AIHW), shows that alcohol still tops the list when it
comes to the drugs for which people seek treatment.
The report, Alcohol and other drug treatment services in
Australia 2005-06, profiles over 150,000 treatment episodes
from 664 government-funded alcohol and other drug treatment
agencies across Australia.
The AIHW's Dr Chris Stevenson said 'Alcohol is the most widely
used drug in Australia and is also the most common drug for which
people seek treatment.
In 2005-06, alcohol was the main drug of concern nominated by
clients in 39% of treatment episodes.
However, when all drugs of concern are considered (that is, the
main drug and any other drug use that concerns the client) the
figure rises to around half (54%) of all treatment episodes.'
Alcohol has consistently been the most common drug nominated by
clients over the last five reporting periods, with the proportion
of treatment episodes for this drug changing very little over that
time.
Similar to previous years, cannabis was the most common illicit
drug people sought treatment for (25% of episodes), followed by
heroin (14%) and amphetamines (11%). The 2004 National Drug
Strategy Household Survey also shows that cannabis is the most
widely used illicit drug in Australia.
Dr Stevenson noted that many clients sought treatment for
multiple drug use, with over half (53%) of treatment episodes
involving at least two drugs. He also noted that the drugs
nominated by clients were strongly related to their age.
'Alcohol was the most common drug of concern for clients aged 30
years and over. However, for younger clients, cannabis was the most
common drug nominated, particularly for clients aged under 20 years
where cannabis accounted for one out of two episodes,' he said.
As in previous reports, counselling was the most commonly
provided treatment overall and for most drug types.
26 July 2007
Further information: Dr Chris Stevenson, AIHW
tel. 6244 1216 or Ms Louise York, AIHW tel. 6244 1271
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. 61 2 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability of Alcohol and other drug
treatment services in Australia 2005-06.