New trends in Substance Misuse

Mike Hedges AM welcomed good news regarding Wales being at the forefront of European work to identify new trends in substance misuse –

 

 

 The Welsh Emerging Drugs and Identification of Novel Substances (WEDINOS) project was launched in 2013 by Public Health Wales to provide an early warning system for novel psychoactive substances, including so-called legal highs, circulating in the community. It analyses substances submitted by the public and publishes results of the samples online – www.wedinos.org – in an anonymous form.

 

In its first 12 months, WEDINOS received and profiled 1,869 samples. From these samples it has identified 254 substances.  WEDINOS has submitted 19 reporting forms to the EU Early Warning System – part of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction – in relation to substances not previous profiled in the UK. Some of these have not previously been identified at the European level.

WEDINOS played a key role in reducing the harm associated with the use of a brand of synthetic legal high called Clockwork Orange which was being sold across South Wales.

 

Mike Said –

‘I have been very concerned by the growing use of ‘legal highs’ by young people and it is good to see that Wales is leading the way in identifying these substances and reporting them on to the EU Early Warning System. I know from living in Morriston the affect these legal highs can have on young people. Effective monitoring of these substances is essential if we are to keep on top of the problem where small changes to compounds keep the substances legal. The next step is to outlaw not just individual drugs but the whole family of drugs based around the active component.