The Global Drug Survey 2019

The Global Drug Survey 2019 is upon us! The largest drug survey in the world has told us so many interesting things over the past few years which have allowed us to better understand drug trends and the real life harms facing people who take drugs. We also know where in the world cocaine can be delivered to your door faster than a pizza  and who is most likely to end up in hospital after taking alcohol, cocaine or MDMA. Scotland is high up on the top of the list for each of those drugs.
This information might make for catchy headlines but it also helps us better understand where we should be directing our efforts in harm reduction, the kind of information we need to develop and how we can support people in reducing harm from any drugs they may choose to take.

Dr Adam Winstock is a Consultant Psychiatrist and Addiction Medicine Specialist who founded GDS in 2011. Since then over 550,000 people from over 40 countries have taken part in the annual surveys. Global Drug Survey (GDS) is an independent research organisation based in London. GDS is comprised of a network of international experts in the field of drugs, health, criminology and public policy with a mission is to help make drug use safer regardless of the legal status of the drug.

Global Drug Survey for GDS2019 launches today – 29th October and is expected to be the most successful yet. Every year the survey expands into new regions and cultures.  The research is approved by university ethics committees and has led to more than 50 peer reviewed publications in the last five years.

The last survey GDS2018, was translated into 19 languages and was completed by over 130,000 people. The Lancet ran an editorial on GDS in May 2018 highlighting how the work helps the world have honest conversations about drugs use which can bring about changes in policy, treatment and drug use cultures.

GDS2019 will be translated into more than 20 languages. The core GDS2019 survey will take 20 minutes. Aside from exploring issues of cost, purchase and patterns of use of the world’s most commonly used drugs GDS2019 will explore cannabis health messages, the use of cannabis edibles and the acceptableness of psychedelic therapies and current LSD micro-dosing regimens. In addition, the survey will look at drug policing, the use of drug analysis, the dark net and novel drugs. In addition, there is a specialist sections on drugs, sexual assault and consent and prescription drug use including how people try to quit opioids.

Take the survey now