Launch of pilot reporting scheme for harms associated with illicit drugs, particularly new psychoactive substances
We are launching a pilot scheme for healthcare professionals in the UK to report suspected adverse reactions to illicit drugs, particularly new psychoactive substances.
Post-publication update: February 2020
Closure of RIDR
The Report Illicit Drug Reactions (RIDR) pilot was not extended beyond 2019/20. RIDR was originally conceived as a 1-year pilot however extensions to this period were made to allow for proof of concept and to focus on increasing the levels of reporting into the service from a wider audience. Unfortunately, the volume of reports remained low and the decision was taken to end the pilot and close RIDR.
The RIDR site closed for reporting on 10 January 2020 and is due to close finally on 28 February 2020. It will then be archived under the UK Government Web Archive by the National Archives.
Arrangements for reporting illicit drug reactions after closure
After the closure of the RIDR website, healthcare professionals can continue to report illicit drug reactions into local drug alert systems where these exist and/or to the national Public Health England (PHE) drugs alert via the dedicated Drug.Alerts@phe.gov.uk inbox. PHE asks that potentially identifiable information is not shared with this inbox, such as name or identification number.
Suspected adverse drug reactions to licensed medicines should continue to be reported through the Yellow Card website. Suspected interactions between licensed medicines and illicit drugs should also be reported via Yellow Card.
Background
New psychoactive substances (previously known as ‘legal highs’) pose potentially serious risks to public health. The number of new substances identified in recent years has increased rapidly, with greater availability over the internet.
Hospital admissions for poisoning by psychostimulants with abuse potential have increased by 44% in England and Wales from the period 2009–10 to 2014–15.[footnote 1] At present, evidence is lacking about the long-term harms to health associated with use of such illicit substances, and more monitoring in this area is needed.
Use of these substances is commonly accompanied by use of licensed medicines. This project will enable us to collaborate more closely with Public Health England on safety issues that affect licensed medicines and illicit drugs.
Reporting of harm
A pilot reporting website, the Report Illicit Drug Reaction form, will be available for 1 year for healthcare professionals across the UK who come into contact with patients experiencing harm associated with use of illicit drugs, particularly new psychoactive substances. The pilot aims to better collect data on harms from illicit drug use, to support provision of clinical guidance to professionals.
The form is intended to be used by health professionals who work in emergency departments, general practice, drug treatment services, sexual health services, mental health services, and any other services who come into contact with people who have developed acute or chronic problems associated with use of new psychoactive substances.
The scheme is available for healthcare professionals throughout England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
The reporting site is modelled on our Yellow Card website, with the aim of offering a simple reporting process with which many Yellow Card reporters may be familiar. If you are a registered user of Yellow Card, you can even log in with these details to access all your incident reports in the same place.
Suspected adverse drug reactions to licensed medicines should continue to be reported through the Yellow Card website. Suspected interactions between licensed medicines and illicit drugs should also be reported via Yellow Card.
Article citation: Drug Safety Update volume 10 issue 8, March 2017: 2.
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Health and Social Care Information Centre. Hospital admissions for poisoning by illicit drugs up by more than 50 per cent in a decade, July 2016. ↩