Summary of main data sources used in this report

Data sources

The data presented in this report are sourced from a range of different data collections from several agencies and organisations, including the:

  • Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)
  • Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)
  • Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC)
  • Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC)
  • National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC).

Each of the data sources provide a part of the story of alcohol, tobacco and drug use. Data sources include a range of methodologies such as:

  • General population surveys (e.g. the National Drug Strategy Household Survey)
  • Surveys of sentinel populations (e.g. the Illicit Drug Reporting System, the Drug Use Monitoring in Australia program and the National Needle Syringe Program)
  • Population consumption data (e.g. the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program and Apparent Consumption of Alcohol, Australia)
  • Administrative data (e.g. criminal courts data)

Consolidating these data sources across multiple collections into one place provides a more complete story of current and emerging trends. However, it is also important to note methodological differences that can influence the comparability of results across collections (for example, see Technical notes: Comparison of national data sources on smoking and alcohol consumption).

The data contained in this report will be updated when more recent data become available. Further information about the data sources used in this report are available here.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2012–13

Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey

Every 6 years

Includes a range of health data including behavioural health risk factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption and illicit drug use for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. It combines the ABS National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS) with a National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey (NATSINPAS) and a National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Measures Survey (NATSIHMS).
2018–19

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey

 Every 6 years Includes a range of health data including behavioural health risk factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption and illicit drug use for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders

2017–18

National Health Survey

Every 3 years

Smoking rates, alcohol consumption and substance use, and links to other health issues

2014–15

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey

Every 6 years

Health risk factors in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons such as smoking rates, alcohol consumption and substance use

2017–18

Apparent consumption of alcohol

Annual

Estimates of apparent consumption of alcohol based on the availability of alcoholic beverages in Australia.

2016, 2017, and 2018

Causes of Death, Australia

Annual

Provides details on causes of death in Australia and demographics for all deaths registered in Australian annual.

2016

Personal Safety Survey

Every 4 years

The survey collected information about the nature and extent of violence experienced by men and women since the age of 15, including their experience of violence in the 12 months prior to the survey.

2018–19

Recorded Crime - Offenders

Annual

Persons proceeded against by police by principal offence (broadly illicit drugs)

2018–19

Criminal Courts Australia

Annual

Defendants finalised by principal offences (broadly illicit drugs)

2018–19

Crime Victimisation Australia

Annual

People's experiences of a selected range of personal and household crimes

2017–18

Prisoners in Australia

Annual

National statistics on all persons remanded or sentenced to adult custodial corrective services
Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2011

Burden of disease: Impact and causes of illness and death in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

Ad hoc

Data on the fatal and non-fatal burden of alcohol and illicit drug disorders on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders

2015

Burden of disease: Impact and Causes of illness and death in Australia

Previous update used 2011 data

Data on the fatal and non-fatal burden of alcohol and illicit drug disorders on population groups

2018

Mothers and babies

Annual

The report includes data on the proportion of mothers’ smoking during pregnancy and babies born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy.

2019

National Drug Strategy Household Survey

Every 3 years

Data on Alcohol, tobacco and other drug use in Australia

2018

National Mortality database

Annual

Data on records for deaths in Australia from 1964

2018–19

Specialist Homelessness Services annual report

Annual

Clients by need for services (alcohol and drug counselling)

2018–19

Youth Justice in Australia

Annual

Information about young people under youth justice supervision in Australia

2018–19

Alcohol and other Drug Treatment Services National Minimum Data Set

Annual

Data on alcohol and other drug treatment services

2019

National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistical Annual Data Collection (NOPSAD)

Annual

The NOPSAD collection provides information on a snapshot day in June 2019 on clients receiving opioid pharmacotherapy treatment, the doctors prescribing opioid pharmacotherapy drugs, and the dosing points.

2018

The Health of Australia’s Prisoners

Every 3 years

Data on tobacco use, illicit drug use and alcohol consumption prior and during prison sentence
2017–18 National Hospital Morbidity Database Annual Episode-level records from admitted patient morbidity data collection systems in Australian hospitals. The data set for the reference period 2017–18 includes records for admitted patient separations between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2018.
Source: Cancer Council Victoria

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2017

Australian Secondary School Students’ use of tobacco, alcohol, and over-the-counter and illicit substances in 2017

Every 3 years

Lifetime and current use of tobacco, alcohol, analgesics, tranquilisers and illicit substances and related behaviours, 12–17 year olds.
2019 Chapter 2. Trends in tobacco consumption in Tobacco in Australia: Facts and issues As material becomes available

In particular, subsections:

  • Scollo & Bayly 2.2 Dutiable tobacco products as an estimate of tobacco consumption
  • Bayly and Scollo, 2.4 Expenditure on tobacco products
  • Bayly and Scollo, 2.5 Industry sales figures as estimates for consumption.
Source: Australian Institute of Criminology

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2011

Counting the costs of crime in Australia: a 2011 estimate

Ad-hoc

Data on the human economic cost of drug abuse in Australia.

2018

Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2018

Annual

Data on changes in alcohol and other drug consumption habits among Australian police detainees and through its monitoring and reporting of fluctuations in the illicit drug market
2017–18 Homicide in Australia 2017–18 Annual Data from the National Homicide Monitoring Program on homicide incidents, victims and offenders in Australia.
Source: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2017–18

Illicit Drug Data Report

Annual

National data on the illicit drug market, including arrests, detections, seizures, purity, profiling and price data.

2020

National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program (NWDMP) Report

3 times a year

The NWDMP measures the presence of 13 drugs (both licit and illicit) in samples obtained from wastewater treatment plants in capital city and regional sites across Australia.
Source: National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2019

Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)

Annual

A national illicit drug monitoring system with interviews with a sample of regular injecting drug users, interviews with experts and additional contextual information. The IDRS monitors the price, purity and availability of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, cannabis and other drugs. Along with trends in the use and harms of these drugs.

2019

The Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)

Annual

The Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS) is a national monitoring system for ecstasy and related drugs that is intended to identify emerging trends of local and national interest in the markets for these drugs.

2019

Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia, 1997–2018

 

A suite of products summarising trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia from 1997–2018.
2019 Trends in drug-related hospitalisations in Australia, 1999–2018  

A suite of products summarising trends in drug-induced hospitalisations in Australia from 1999–2018
Source: National Drug Research Institute

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2016–17

Young Australians Alcohol Reporting System (YAARS)

Ad hoc

Non–random national sample 3,400 risky drinkers. The participants were recruited online and screened to check whether their qualified to be in the top 25% of risky drinkers. The survey looks into the risky drinking patterns of adolescents aged 14–19, by taking a ‘snapshot’ of the details of their most recent risky drinking occasion.
Source: The Kirby Institute

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2018

Australian Needle Syringe National Data report

Annual

The Australian Needle and Syringe Program Survey (ANSPS) provides serial point prevalence estimates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibodies and sexual and injecting risk behaviour among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Australia.
Source: Bureau of Infrastructure and Regional Development

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2018

Road trauma Australia 2018 statistical summary

Annual

Provides annual data on road fatalities and includes data on road trauma incidents involving alcohol
Source: Turning point – Victoria

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2018

AMBO-Stats

Annual

AODstats provides information on the harms related to alcohol, illicit and pharmaceutical drug use in Victoria.
Source: International

Source year

Data source 

Frequency of publication

Information

2018

UNODC – World Drug Report 2020

Annual

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime data from a range of counties—includes supply, prevalence, price, and treatment data.

2019

OECD – Health Statistics 2019

Annual

Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development includes prevalence of smoking and alcohol consumption by country, mortality and morbidity statistics and pharmaceuticals.