Re-examining mandatory drug testing in Australian prisons

Jocelyn Chan; Mark Stoové; Jon Cook; Thileepan Naren

doi:10.1111/dar.13894

Re-examining mandatory drug testing in Australian prisons

Drug Alcohol Rev. 2024 Nov;43(7):1654-1656. doi: 10.1111/dar.13894. Epub 2024 Jul 7.

Authors

Jocelyn Chan^{1

2}, Mark Stoové^{1

3}, Jon Cook^{2

3}, Thileepan Naren^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Disease Elimination Program, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia.
² Drug Health Services, Western Health, Melbourne, Australia.
³ Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

PMID: 38972045
DOI: 10.1111/dar.13894

Abstract

Mandatory drug testing is commonly used in Australian prisons to detect and deter drug use. In this commentary, we review the limited evidence for mandatory drug testing programs, highlight potential harms associated with their implementation and provide recommendations for drug surveillance in prisons concordant with a harm minimisation framework.

Keywords: drug use; harm minimisation; prisons; surveillance.

MeSH terms

Australia
Harm Reduction*
Humans
Mandatory Testing
Prisoners
Prisons*
Substance Abuse Detection* / methods
Substance-Related Disorders* / diagnosis
Substance-Related Disorders* / epidemiology