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Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals: trends, harms and treatment 2006–07 to 2015–16
Publication
Release Date:
Topic: Illicit use of drugs
Citation
AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) (2017) Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals: trends, harms and treatment 2006–07 to 2015–16, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 6 June 2026.
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The non-medical use of pharmaceuticals is common—about 1 million Australians (4.8%) aged 14 years or older reported recent non-medical use of a pharmaceutical drug. Prescriptions for opioid analgesics continued to increase and chronic pain and mental illness was higher among people with recent non-medical use of a pharmaceutical. Drug-induced deaths where benzodiazepines or other opioids like oxycodone and codeine were present, has more than doubled over the past decade.
- ISSN: 2205-5088 (PDF) 1447-6746 (Print)
- ISBN: 978-1-76054-266-5
- Cat. no: HSE 195
- Pages: 41
Findings from this report:
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1 million Australians (4.8%) aged 14 years or older misused a pharmaceutical drug in the previous 12 months
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Prescriptions for opioid analgesics continue to rise, increasing 24% between 2010–11 and 2014–15
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Over the past decade, drug-induced deaths were more likely to be due to prescription drugs than illegal drugs
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Chronic pain and mental illness is higher among people who used pharmaceuticals for non-medical purposes