Care to be Aware: Support the implementation of recreational drug check facilities Australia to reduce unintentional deadly overdoses

The desire to experiment with unsafe and unpredictable substances is believed to stem from curiosity for almost 70% of Australians aged 14 or over who have ever tried drugs (Australian Drug Info, 2014). The social problem with this data is the drug related injury and death toll in Australia that amounts as a result. In order to try and reduce the number of drug related injuries and deaths, Care to be Aware will aim to raise awareness and gain public support for the implementation of recreational drug testing facilities in Australia.

In 2012, there were 183,000 drug related deaths worldwide, with Australia and New Zealand having a higher than average drug mortality rate in comparison to the rest of the globe (UNODC 2014). Data obtained from Australia’s Party Drug Initiative revealed that a vast majority of users attempted to find out the content and purity of their drugs prior to consumption, and two thirds of those surveyed reported that testing mechanisms would be a useful resource (Australian Drug Foundation 2005). Results from a 2013 survey conducted by the Australian National Council on Drugs revealed that over 80% of the 2300 respondents aged 16-25 were in favour of introducing such facilities.