Rapid assessment of performance and image enhancing drugs (PIEDs) in New South Wales: Feasibility study
NDARC Staff
Louisa Degenhardt, Paul Dillon, Jan Copeland and Briony Larance
Aims
- describe the characteristics of a sample of PIEDs users
- examine the patterns of PIEDs and other drugs use of this sample
- document the price, purity and availability of PIEDs in Sydney
- examine participant’s perceptions of the incidence and nature of PIEDs-related harms, including physical, psychological, financial, occupational, social and legal harms
- identify emerging trends in the PIEDs market that may require further investigation
Design and Method
The methodology of the present study was based on an existing program of research, the Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS). There were three main sources of information used to document PIEDs trends in NSW:
- face-to-face interviews with 60 male PIEDs users recruited in Sydney
- telephone interviews with 24 key experts who, through the nature of their work, had regular contact with PIEDs users or knowledge of PIEDs markets in NSW
- indicator data sources such as domestic and border seizures of AAS, calls to drug information lines, and health dat
These three data sources were triangulated to provide an indication of convergent trends in PIEDs use and markets. The 2005 findings were compared to a similar study conducted in 1997 to give a broad indication of whether trends in the PIEDs market have changed over time. The present study also examined the feasibility of using this methodology across all jurisdictions as an ongoing monitoring system for PIEDs (such as the IDRS model).
Output
Larance, B., Degenhardt, L., Dillon, P. & Copeland, J. (2005) Rapid assessment of performance and image enhancing drugs (PIEDs) in New South Wales: Feasibility study. Technical Report No. 239. National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, Sydney.Funding
Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing