Hjelpesøkende atferd blant brukere av illegale rusmidler
Link to article:
Authors:
Røgeberg, Ole og Willy Pedersen
Year:
2021
Reference:
Tidsskriftet Den norske legeforening
Summary
Are users of illegal drugs less likely to seek relevant help for health related issues? Willy Pedersen and Ole Rogeberg describe the results of a relevant survey in an article in Tidsskriftet for den Norske Legeforening. The survey recruited users from a harm-reduction oriented website (rusopplysningen.no). The users were a relatively "invisible" group of users that would be unlikely to be identified as users in public data registers: A minority had been caught by the police for their use. A sizeable share (36%) of the 2485 responses analysed stated that they had avoided telling health personnel about their use in situations where this would have been relevant information. 14% stated that they had had a need for substance use treatment, but two thirds of these had delayed or avoided seeking treatment. A total of 815 reported having experienced an acute drug-related medical incident. Of these, 82 (10%) said people had delayed and 330 (41%) said people had avoided calling an ambulance. Fear of the police was the most frequently stated reason for avoiding calling for help in these acute situations.
Project:
Oppdragsgiver: Bruk av egen kompetansetidOppdragsgivers prosjektnr.:
Frisch prosjekt: 4901 - Criminalization of drug use - consequences for user behavior.