A investigation of the public health effects of retail heroin markets from a consumer perspective

在我们的社区中，与海洛因使用有关的健康问题是一个重大的公共卫生问题。在过去十年中，与海洛因有关的死亡人数有所增加，有证据表明丙型肝炎在注射海洛因的个人中继续传播。在此期间，澳大利亚的海洛因市场发生了重大变化，街头价格下降，纯度增加，我们看到在一些主要城市出现了街头市场。拟议研究的目的是通过检查消费者（海洛因使用者）如何使用这个市场，提高我们对零售海洛因市场（海洛因使用者进入的那部分市场）的理解。该项目将审查海洛因市场与包括依赖在内的与海洛因使用有关的健康问题之间的关系。这项研究将在墨尔本市区的6个地点进行，这些地点的选择是基于它们已经建立了街头市场，并且非致命和致命过量的水平很高。在每个站点，将与注射吸毒者和其他了解当地市场的人进行访谈和调查，并将对每个地区的街头市场进行详细观察。这些资料将与警察缴获的海洛因纯度、致命和非致命过量、警察行动和逮捕、针头注射器分发和退回等指标结合起来。本研究收集的信息将用于了解零售海洛因市场作为一个消费市场，以及市场对使用该市场的个人健康状况的影响。我们从这项研究中获得的知识将为制定更有效的方法来减少与海洛因使用有关的健康问题以及预测市场变化（如价格下降）对这些问题的影响奠定基础。

The health problems associated with heroin use within our community are a major public health issue. Within the past decade there has been an increase in heroin-related deaths and evidence of the continuing spread of hepatitis C among individuals who inject heroin. Within this period there have been substantial changes in the heroin market in Australia, with street prices decreasing and purity increasing and we have witnessed the emergence of street markets in a number of major cities. The aim of the proposed research is to improve our understanding of the retail heroin market (that part of the market which is accessed by heroin users) by examining how the consumers (heroin users) use this market. The project will examine the relationship between the heroin market and the health problems associated with heroin use including dependence. The research will be conducted at 6 sites within metropolitan Melbourne which have been chosen on the basis that they have established street markets and high levels of non-fatal and fatal overdose. At each site interviews and surveys will be conducted with injecting drug users and others with knowledge of the local market and detailed observations will be made of street markets in each of these areas. This information will be combined with indicators of purity of heroin seized by police, fatal and non fatal-overdoses, police operations and arrests, and needle-syringe distribution and return. The information gathered in this research will be used to develop an understanding of the retail heroin market as a consumer market place and the impact of the market upon the health status of the individuals who use this market. The knowledge that we gain from this research will provide the foundation for developing more effective approaches to reducing the health problems associated with heroin use and for predicting the impact of changes in the market such as a reduction in price upon these problems.