Summary

In Tasmania in 2008–09, 15 government-funded alcohol and other drug treatment agencies provided 2,081 treatment episodes. This is one less treatment agency and 221 fewer treatment episodes than in 2007–08.

The median1 age of persons receiving treatment for their own drug use and those seeking treatment for someone else’s drug use was 29 years and 48 years, respectively.

Though a decrease on the previous year, cannabis was again the most common principal drug of concern, accounting for 39% of episodes, compared with 45% of episodes in 2007–08. Alcohol increased to 38% of episodes, opioids including heroin and methadone accounted for just over 10% of episodes and amphetamines for 9%.

Counselling was again the most common form of main treatment provided (increasing from 54% of episodes in 2007–08 to 57% in 2008–09). Information and education decreased from 25% of episodes 2007–08 to 17% in 2008–09 and rehabilitation made up almost 9% of treatment episodes.

  1. The median is the midpoint of a list of observations ranked from the smallest to the largest.

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