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Novel psychoactive substances as a novel challenge for health professionals: results from an Italian survey
Author(s) -
Simonato Pierluigi,
Corazza Ornella,
Santonastaso Paolo,
Corkery John,
Deluca Paolo,
Davey Zoe,
Blaszko Ursula,
Schifano Fabrizio
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
human psychopharmacology: clinical and experimental
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.461
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1099-1077
pISSN - 0885-6222
DOI - 10.1002/hup.2300
Subject(s) - addiction , health professionals , european commission , psychiatry , medicine , european union , psychology , political science , business , health care , law , economic policy
Novel psychoactive substances (NPS; a.k.a. ‘legal highs’ or ‘smart drugs’) are advertised online as ‘safe’ and ‘legal’ natural/synthetic analogues of controlled illicit drugs. However, only little research has been carried out in identifying the health professionals' knowledge and expertise relating to the intake of these compounds. Methods Data presented here refer to the Italian component of the European Union‐wide, European Commission‐funded, ReDNet project survey. An ad‐hoc questionnaire was administered to professionals from the departments of Addiction, Psychiatry, Paediatrics and Emergency Room Services in Italy. Results The interviewees' sample included 243 professionals, mostly from the departments of Addiction (35%) and Psychiatry (28.4%). Overall, interviewees self‐reported a poor technical knowledge relating to NPS; some 27% of respondents confirmed of not being aware if their patients presented with a previous history of NPS misuse. Discussion Novel psychoactive substances prevalence of misuse was not considered to be an unusual phenomenon in Italy, and most health professionals appeared to have concerns relating to associated medical and psychopathological risks, especially in terms of aggression/psychomotor agitation. Overall, most respondents reported the need to have better access to NPS‐related reliable sources of information. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.