ACT pushes for national pill-testing after study finds it encouraged people to ditch unsafe drugs

The Australian Capital Territory will continue to push for pill-testing nationally after an independent review confirmed a trial in Canberra encouraged buyers of a synthetic ecstasy substitute to ditch unsafe drugs.

The Australian National University evaluation of pill-testing at Groovin the Moo in April, released on Tuesday, declared the trial of 234 patrons a success because “all those who had a very dangerous substance detected disposed of that drug in the amnesty bin”.

The study found all seven festival patrons whose pills were found to contain the highly toxic chemical N-Ethylpentylone, a drug sold as MDMA and associated with deaths in the US and New Zealand, disposed of their drugs.

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It found that more than 40% of patrons who used the service said they intended to reduce the quantity of drugs they would use (28%), not use them at all, or have only alcohol (13%).

The ACT health and youth minister, Rachel Stephen-Smith, said she would bring the results to the next health ministers’ meeting in 2020 because governments have a responsibility “to not only try and prevent drug use but also to support initiatives that reduce the harms associated with drug use”.

“I hope all states and territories consider these findings seriously,” she said.

“Across the country we have seen too many avoidable deaths at music festivals. It is obvious current processes and policies are not working and more needs to be done.”

In neighbouring New South Wales, a coronial inquest into drug-related festival deaths has called for pill-testing to be introduced permanently, but the call was rebuffed by the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, who claims it gives potential drug users a “a false sense of security”. Victoria has also rejected calls for a trial.

The ANU study found most patrons who presented a sample believed they had MDMA (89.5%), and 91% of them were correct.

“When a patron was told that their drug was not what they expected it to be, they were less likely to take that drug,” it said.

“When a patron was told that their drug was what they expected it to be, they were more likely to take that drug.”

Despite the fact more than 40% planned to reduce or not use drugs, 19% reported that they planned to use the same amount and 8% said they would use more of the drug than originally planned. One quarter (26%) were not sure how the test results would influence their intentions.

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The lead researcher, Anna Olsen, said the fact the service led to harm reduction behaviours among patrons was a key marker of success, including disposing of highly dangerous drugs when they were identified.

“And for people who go on to take the drug they had tested, we found evidence for risk-reducing behaviours such as taking less of the drug, spacing out their drug consumption and taking other safety precautions like drinking lots of water,” she said.

“Our evaluation team applauds the ACT government for showing such leadership on this issue and the open-mindedness and willingness to work with the relevant experts and services to trial this service, building the evidence base for policymaking in this space.”

The study found the trial produced “valuable information about illicit drug availability”, including identification of N-Ethylpentylone, a substance “previously unidentified in the ACT”, and confirmation of increased prevalence and purity of MDMA in Canberra.

The first trial of pill-testing in April 2018 had similarly positive results, with 30% of respondents suggesting they would not take drugs or take fewer as a result.