Crack cocaine in the Dublin region - Health Research Board

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Ten interviews were conducted with current or former crack users. A number of theseparticipants were recruited through drug-treatment and social services. A purposivesampling procedure was used to recruit participants. 8 In light of the fact that crackusers may not access treatment or social services, the research team also used asnowball sampling procedure to recruit participants outside drug-treatment and socialservices. This involved using respondents identified through treatment services to assistin recruiting other crack users known to them who were not in treatment.The interviews and focus groups were audio-taped and transcribed verbatim. Thetranscribed data was entered into NVivo (qualitative data analysis software) andanalysed using a coding scheme based on the interview guide. 9 Key themes in eachinterview and focus group were identified and categorised according to their code andthe similarities and differences within these key themes were examined.Drug-treatment dataThe National Drug Treatment Reporting System (NDTRS) is an epidemiological databaseon treated problem drug and alcohol use in Ireland.Drug-treatment data are viewed as an indirect indicator of drug and alcohol misuseas well as a direct indicator of demand for treatment services. NDTRS data are usedat both a national (alcohol and drug data) and European level (drug data) to provideinformation on the characteristics of clients entering treatment, and on patterns ofsubstance misuse, such as types of substance used and consumption behaviours.For the purpose of the NDTRS, treatment is broadly defined as ‘any activity which aimsto alleviate the psychological, medical or social state of individuals who seek help fortheir substance misuse problems’. Drug-treatment options include one or more of thefollowing: medication (detoxification, methadone reduction, substitution programmesand psychiatric treatment); brief intervention; counselling; group therapy; familytherapy; psychotherapy; complementary therapy; and/or life skills training.Compliance with the NDTRS requires that one form be completed for each new clientcoming for first treatment and for each previously treated client returning to treatmentfor problem substance use. Service providers at treatment centres throughout Irelandcollect data on each individual who attends for first treatment or returns to treatmentbetween 1 January and 31 December each year.8 Using a purposive sampling procedure, respondents are chosen because they have particular features orcharacteristics which will enable detailed exploration of the research objectives (Robson 2002).9 Nvivo is software that facilities the analysis of qualitative data (e.g. in-depth interviews, field notes, focusgroups etc.) in a systematic fashion.Crack cocaine in the Dublin region: an evidence base for a crack cocaine strategy27
The main elements of the reporting system are defined as:All cases treated – describes individuals who receive treatment for cocaine use at eachtreatment centre in a calendar year, and includes:Previously treated cases – describes individuals who were treated previously for cocaineuse at any treatment centre and have returned to treatment, andNew cases treated – describes individuals who have never been treated for problemcocaine use; andStatus unknown – describes individuals whose status with respect to previous treatmentfor problem cocaine use is not known.The analysis provides an outline of the following: numbers treated for problemcocaine and crack use in Dublin; main problem drugs; additional problem drugs; riskbehaviours and socio–demographic characteristics of cases.Criminal justice dataAlthough the number of drug seizures in any given period can be affected by suchfactors as law-enforcement resources, strategies and priorities, and by the vulnerabilityof traffickers to law-enforcement activities, drug seizures are considered as indirectindicators of the supply and availability of drugs (Connolly 2005). Information on thenumber of crack seizures and crack-related arrests in the Garda North Central Divisionwas provided by the Garda National Drugs Unit. The gardaí have highlighted potentialdifficulties with reporting crack seizures accurately. For example, seizures of powdercocaine intended to be manufactured into crack cocaine are reported as ‘powdercocaine seizures’. This will in effect lead to an under-reporting of the overall number ofseizures of crack cocaine (GNDU, personal communication, May 2008).It is important to gather information regarding the price and purity of illicit drugs, asanalysis of these factors can add to the understanding of drug markets. Drug pricedata enable us to estimate the value of the illicit drug market. Identifying data on therelative price and purity of drugs also allows us to compare different stages or levels ofthe market and to assess supply-control measures (Connolly 2005). For example, lowerprices suggest a higher availability of crack cocaine (Burgess 2003). Information aboutthe value of the illicit drug market can also provide an indication as to its relativeimportance in local economies. Lenke and Olssen (1998: 11) suggest that the price andpurity of drugs can be affected by the level of market organisation. More sophisticatedmarkets are, they suggest, ‘characterised by a fairly good balance between supply anddemand’ which leads to relatively stable drug price and purity. Chemical drug profiling28 Crack cocaine in the Dublin region: an evidence base for a crack cocaine strategy
Page 1 and 2: HRB Research Series6Crack cocaine i
Page 3 and 4: This publication should be cited as
Page 5 and 6: HRB Research Series publicationsto
Page 8 and 9: ContentsList of tables and figures
Page 10 and 11: 7 Social consequences of crack use
Page 12 and 13: List of tables and figuresTablesTab
Page 14 and 15: AbbreviationsADRUGNDUHRBISCCSGLDTFN
Page 16 and 17: Glossary of termsBenzos: The street
Page 18 and 19: Executive summaryBackground and stu
Page 20 and 21: phone and buyers are directed to sp
Page 22 and 23: Part 1IntroductionCrack cocaine in
Page 24 and 25: In the light of these concerns, it
Page 26 and 27: extensive reporting in the US about
Page 30 and 31: also offers potential to trace supp
Page 32 and 33: Part 2Crack cocaine in the Dublin r
Page 34 and 35: 2.2 Criminal justice data - cocaine
Page 36 and 37: Prevalence of crack use among homel
Page 38 and 39: Local survey dataA survey in 2006 o
Page 40 and 41: Respondent 1: I’d say it’s stil
Page 42 and 43: 3 Dublin crack cocaine market3.0 Ov
Page 44 and 45: sold on the street for as little as
Page 46 and 47: Like, I was down on M… Street in
Page 48 and 49: 3.4 Marketing crackFour interviewee
Page 50 and 51: While crack was generally bought al
Page 52 and 53: • Although a number of dealers, o
Page 54 and 55: 4.2 Crack use and genderAccording t
Page 56 and 57: From about 16 to 21 I would say - t
Page 58 and 59: Table 4.4Number of new cases who li
Page 60 and 61: 5.2 Crack and other drugsMany of th
Page 62 and 63: Whether treated cases reported crac
Page 64 and 65: cases of intravenous cocaine use, t
Page 66 and 67: Table 5.5Number (%) of new cases wh
Page 68 and 69: Part 3Consequences of crack useCrac
Page 70 and 71: etween heroin, cocaine and crime. T
Page 72 and 73: So, they would talk about the kind
Page 74 and 75: Crack and prostitutionNine services
Page 76 and 77: On the other hand, reports from two
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often with a prevalence of opiate d
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The data provided by the NDTRS in S
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But you know it would be about kind
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So, debt is another significant iss
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7.6 Key findings• A significant p
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There are considerable long-term ps
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8.3 Psychological consequences of c
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9 Treating crack use9.0 OverviewIn
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Some services were in a position to
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Both opiate-dependent and non-opiat
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• more outreach work to identify
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10 Policing crack markets10.0 Overv
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local communities. There is growing
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He’d know me, I’d know him, you
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Table 10.1 Number of new cases who
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108 Crack cocaine in the Dublin reg
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11 Discussion and research implicat
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11.2 Responding to crack markets an
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11.3 Reducing the harm that crack c
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Shoplifting, burglary and robbery w
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Bourgois P (2003b) Crack and the po
Page 121 and 122:
Furey M and Browne C (2004) Opiate
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Loughran H and McCann ME (2006) A c
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San Diego Police Department (1998)
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Appendix A:An evidence base for tre
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note that providing information on
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MedicationsA number of studies have
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interpersonal psychotherapy. Americ
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Jurisdiction Intervention/Descripti
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Jurisdiction Intervention/Descripti
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Appendix C:Recent HRB series public
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140 Crack cocaine in the Dublin reg
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Crack cocaine in the Dublin region - Health Research Board

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