This section presents key state and territory findings on specialist alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment services, the people they treat, and the treatment they provided in 2023–24.
The technical notes page provides details on the data, with further information available in the Alcohol and other drug treatment services NMDS 2023–24 Quality Statement. In addition, a series of state and territory supplementary tables accompanying the annual report are also available.
Key findings
In 2023–24:
- 1,304 publicly funded agencies provided services for clients who received AOD treatment in Australia, ranging from 17 in the Australian Capital Territory to 487 in New South Wales.
- In all states and territories, the greatest number of clients were treated for alcohol as their principal drug of concern, ranging from 13,205 clients in Queensland to 1,250 in Tasmania.
- In all states and territories alcohol, as the principal drug of concern, accounted for the most treatment provided; Northern Territory (63% of all treatment episodes), Australian Capital Territory (49%), Tasmania (49%), Western Australia (47%), New South Wales (43%), South Australia (40%), Queensland (40%) and Victoria (39%) (nationally 42%).
- Amphetamines were the second most common principal drug of concern in all states and territories. Treatment episodes for amphetamines ranged from 15% in the Northern Territory to 32% in South Australia (nationally the second most common drug of concern; 26%).
- Counselling was the most common treatment provided nationally (33%) and in most states and territories. Assessment only was the most common treatment type in the Northern Territory and Queensland.
Over the period 2014–15 to 2023–24:
- The number of publicly funded agencies rose from 838 to 1,304 in 2023–24, a change largely driven by increases in New South Wales (from 296 to 487) and Victoria (from 140 to 350).
- Similar to national results, alcohol, amphetamines, cannabis and heroin were the most common principal drugs of concern treated in 4 of the 8 states and territories.
- Counselling was the most common main treatment type across most states and territories during this period.
Consistently since 2013-14, the greatest numbers of clients have been treated for alcohol as their most common principal drug of concern in New South Wales, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory, and the Northern Territory. In the remaining states, amphetamines or cannabis briefly interrupted this trend.
State and territory client rates
Nationally, the rate of clients who received specialist AOD treatment was 553 per 100,000 people in 2023–24, the lowest rate since 2013–14 (Table SCR.21). The rate of clients treated by publicly funded AOD treatment agencies in each state and territory varied over time, most notably with recent decreases in New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia and the Australian National Territory (Figure AODTS clients 1).
