Mortality Matters: addressing rising rates of drug-related deaths in the UK

It is now the case that fatal drug overdoses kill two and a half times more people in the UK per year than road traffic accidents. When each year drug-related deaths show no sign of slowing, when the figures show that 3,674 people lost their lives to drug poisoning in 2015, and with a mortality rate now higher than at any point since records began, a radical response is necessary.

Addaction will call on Government to tackle the alarming increase in drug related deaths head on. This one day national conference will be a unique opportunity to examine the issues surrounding the recent increases in drug related deaths across the UK. Featuring leading cross-sector expertise, the event will also provide an opportunity to discuss solutions to reduce this trend.

Speakers:

Dr Kostas Agath - Medical Director, Addaction
Dr Domingos Duran - SICAD, Portugal
Prof Alex Stevens - Professor in Criminal Justice at the University of Kent
Dr Owen Bowden-Jones – PHE and Honorary Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London
Nigel Newcomen CBE – Prisons & Probation Ombudsman
Paul Hayes - CEO, Collective Voice
Karen Tyrell - Executive Director of External Affairs, Addaction
Anna Whitton - Executive Director of Operations, Addaction
Dr Prun Bijral - Medical Director, Change Grow Live
Dr Sandra Oelbaum - Associate Medical Director and Primary Care Lead, Addaction
Mark Johnson - Founder, User Voice
Plus people with lived experience

Who Should Attend:

Substance misuse workers, senior managers and decision makers, prison workers, commissioners and other funders, academics and researchers. The event will also be of interest to policy makers, CCG leads, practitioners and clinicians who will provide quality, relevant, authoritative and unbiased information to support our work.

By attending the event, delegates will:

• Have a comprehensive overview on the prevalence and causes of drug related deaths


• Understand the role of drug services in ensuring the rate of drug related deaths begins to reduce


• Hear the latest research from the ACMD and PHE


• Explore the unique drug policy approach in Portugal, including implementation and outcomes


• Understand how drug related deaths in prisons is being tackled, and what new trends are emerging in relation to NPSs


• Hear about a brand new online initiative from PHE capturing drug harms

Addaction:

Addaction helps people change their behaviour to become the very best that they can be, supporting people to making lasting change in their lives. Addaction has over 120 services across the UK helping adults, young people, families and communities to change for the better. As one of the UK’s leading and largest specialist drug, alcohol and mental health treatment charities, Addaction see 70,000 people every year.