In England and Wales in 2003/04, class A drug use was estimated to cost around £15.4 billion in economic and social terms (Gordon et al. 2006). The costs per year per drug misuser incurred by the health sector, by social care, and due to drug related death and crime are estimated to be between £11,800 and £44,000. From this it can be inferred that any reduction in the numbers of drug users can generate significant savings. NICE has published a variety of guidance in this area recently, and below we summarize the guidance, and the related costing tools that are available.
The first Public Health NICE Question Time is launched inHampshire
NICE will be holding its first Public Health-focussed Question Time on Wednesday 19 September 2007. The session will take place at The John Pounds Centre, 23 Queen Street, Portsea, Portsmouth, PO1 3HN from 12.15pm to 1.30pm and will include an audience of NHS professionals as well as staff from local authorities, education and the voluntary sector.
In late August, we are planning a consultation on a guide entitled 'How to change practice - understand, identify and overcome barriers to change'. Look out for more details on our website.
