Author: Nigel Brunsdon

Hi all,
I cannot believe it has been another year, again without any activity from the NNEF!

Granted, we have all been really busy, but that’s no excuse! I am partly to blame and I apologise, again, for the silence. I will be stepping down as Chair at our next AGM, feeling embarrassed that I have not done much, if anything, for the last couple of years. I will hopefully remain on the board and help as much as possible, and throw my dummy out of the pram once in a while of course. It is time for some fresh, invigorated blood to take over.

More and more talks around Drug Consumption Rooms/Overdose Prevention Centres are taking place nationally, with some local authorities pushing forward more than others. Dublin and Glasgow should go live imminently. Hopefully more Diamorphine Assisted Treatment programmes will start up too. I strongly believe we need those services urgently, alongside rapid OST prescribing, if we are to alleviate those truly appalling and, unacceptable Drug Related Deaths. I am also glad there has been a shift for more Harm Reduction interventions, which are so badly needed. It does feel like déjà vu if you ask me. Same old record gong round and round. We know what is needed.

Talking of Drug Related Deaths, I cannot believe they are still rising. We have, again, one the highest rate in Europe. Clearly, our existing policies and strategies do not work and need updating, or just thrown in the bin once and for all, as they are definitely not fit for purpose. Such sad statistics are a blatant proof of this. I also feel enraged when I hear talks of “we need to be ready for those new opioids”, when talking about nitazenes. Nitazenes are already here, but, thankfully, not killing too many people…for now. But what does that actually mean, getting ready? Didn’t we “ready” ourselves, when DRDs started to rise, around 10 years ago? Clearly not. So what will be different this time? Just commissioning more services to “throw” naloxone at people won’t be enough. We have never distributed so many kits, yet DRDs are still rising. Truly unacceptable. Pass me the bin please.

It is worth mentioning that a recent Pharmacy mystery shopper exercise highlighted some issues. I was refused equipment as I didn’t have any returns, or just offered 5 syringes only. Can you believe this is still happening in 2024? Shocking. And we want to eliminate Hep C? How are we going to achieve this if people struggle to get sterile syringes? Clearly more needs to be done. Pharmacies need to be paid a decent amount if they are to start or continue offering NSP.

On a more positive note, we are working hard to make it possible for a conference, hopefully in the Spring of 2025. We would love to see you in person, it’s been ages!

In the meantime, we are all wishing you a wonderful festive season and a happy 2025!

Philippe Bonnet

Hi all, it’s been a while!

We have all been really busy and I am sorry for not sending an update since last year.

I am glad our membership has gone up and we can’t wait to meet our new members, hopefully in person, soon enough.

So what has been happening within our field? Some very good things but, alas, some not so good. We at the NNEF know of some amazing, life saving projects that will become public in 2023 (Editors note: that previous sentence isn’t the original one… we had originally had a whole paragraph highlighting some fantastic projects, but then we remembered they haven’t been announced publicly yet… so yeah… 2023). On the flipside, the Middlesbrough diamorphine assisted treatment project has had to stop due to funding issues. Such a shame as Diamorphine Assisted Treatment clearly works in reducing street heroin consumption/crime/infections etc… It really is a no brainer. But money talks, as always it seems.

The buprenorphine depot injection is becoming more widely used and I’m sure it is a welcome product for some people that are sick and tired of supervised and/or daily consumption, in front of a pharmacist or dispenser (and at times, sadly, an entire shop).

Glad to hear the Dame Carole Black Review has managed to “inject” some much needed cash into drug treatment services. Let’s hope it is spent wisely, very wisely. I guess time will tell but it will be interesting to look at Drug Related Deaths in, let’s say, two years’ time. The proof is the pudding after all.

It still baffles me, in this day and age, when people have to wait, sometimes for up to six weeks (or more), in order to get on OST. Some of our European colleagues cannot understand why either. They ask me: “do you have doctors? Yes. Do you have prescription pads? Yes. Do you have methadone/buprenorphine products? Yes. Then why do you make people wait? I’m not entirely sure…” Some prescribers tell me it’s because of ‘safety reasons’. If that’s the case, then why has the UK still got one of the highest Drug Related Death rate in Europe?

On another sombre note, we are seeing far too many HCV re-infections. The national NSP landscape is more than grim. More and more pharmacies have decided to cease their NSP provision. Some are putting limit on equipment given out (which is against NICE guidance). I’ve been told some are even charging if you have no returns. In certain parts of the Midlands, people are having to walk over an hour to get injecting equipment. This is simply not acceptable. How are going to try to eliminate HCV, by 2025, if people are having to share syringes? That’s only a couple of years away and so much more needs to be done.

On a positive note, the UK HSA have set up a NSP Monitoring Steering Group, which includes two NNEF members, so we should get a better picture of what is truly happening out there.

Ok, I will leave it as that for this year.

The NNEF crew is wishing you all a very happy festive period and are very much looking forward to see you in 2023!

Philippe Bonnet