University of Victoria substance use experts Scott MacDonald and Tim Stockwell are available to media for perspective on the Canadian government's changes to drug-impaired driving laws, including the introduction of mandatory alcohol screening, set to come into force on December 18.
A three-year University of Victoria study of people living homeless or barely housed while struggling with life-threatening medical conditions confirms that when palliative care can be found, it improves the difficult life circumstances and worsening vulnerabilities people face as their health fails.
Substance use costs Canadian society $38.4 billion a year, or almost $1,100 for every person in Canada, according to a new study. The Canadian Substance Use Costs and Harms study, produced by UVic's Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research and the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, examines the costs and harms associated with substance use, and spans four broad areas: health care, lost production, criminal justice and other direct costs.
Two major training grants to the University of Victoria totaling $3.3 million will strengthen research collaboration and train a new generation of skilled researchers for Canada's emerging tech sectors in astronomy instrumentation and drug delivery.
It wasn't so long ago that Molly was just a name. Now, the moniker is slang for the chemical compound MDMA, also known on the street as ecstasy, an illegal psychoactive drug known for its ability to invoke feelings of empathy and euphoria—and a popular drug of choice among festival-goers and young people.
A collaborative style of health research guided by those whose lives are the focus of the research is the model for a new Greater Victoria study aimed at helping people with multiple barriers get the primary health care they need without feeling judged, stigmatized and shut out.
Primary health care delivered with understanding and compassion for people who use drugs is the focus of Greater Victoria's first patient-oriented research study funded through a collaboration between UVic, Island Health, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Findings from a report for the Swedish government by UVic’s Centre for Addictions Research and a team of international researchers could have implications for local, provincial and federal government as more Canadian jurisdictions privatize the distribution and sale of alcohol.
UVic experts are available to media for comment on the federal government’s cannabis legislation, being tabled April 13.
A new study by lead author Bonnie Leadbeater garnered media attention across BC and back east about high frequency in young drivers of risk behaviours, particularly for frequent users of marijuana. The study has implications for plans for legalization of recreational use and preventive education efforts.
With BC's drug overdose epidemic reaching record levels, health care providers are seeking new methods and tools to contain the crisis. UVic's biophysical chemist Dennis Hore has been working to develop an inexpensive mobile device to assist frontline health workers when assisting drug users.
To help navigate this stigma dn multiple barriers to access information about opioid substitution treatment (OST) in BC, UVic’s Centre for Addictions Research produced a users’ guide to the world of prescription opioids (such as methadone and suboxone), treatment and recovery. The handbook was co-written by OST patients, supported by funding from the Province of BC.
UVic's Centre for Addictions Research releases a handbook co-written by a group of patients with experience of opioid substitution treatment in BC.
As the federal government moves forward with legalization of cannabis, many lessons can be learned from the Canadian experience with legalization of alcohol. As 13 researchers from the University of Victoria’s Centre for Addictions Research of BC (CARBC) point out in their co-authored submission to the Task Force on Marijuana Legalization and Regulation in Canada—published today as a publicly available research bulletin—cannabis, like alcohol, is no ordinary commodity. A delicate balance is needed between the pressures for liberalization and addressing potential public and individual harms.
Washrooms in Victoria, particularly those in shelters and social service agencies, have become de facto drug consumption sites in a city seeing a sharp rise in both homelessness and rates of overdoses, shows a new report, released today by researchers with the UVic's Centre for Addictions Research of BC ahead of International Overdose Awareness Day on Aug. 31.
This June, UVic Distinguished Professor Dr. Susan Boyd was named to the nine-person federal task force on marijuana legalization and regulation.
