Academic Journal
Pipes as an engagement tool: qualitative findings from a crack equipment and harm reduction training intervention in England.
| Τίτλος: | Pipes as an engagement tool: qualitative findings from a crack equipment and harm reduction training intervention in England. |
|---|---|
| Συγγραφείς: | Sharpe C; Department for Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, United Kingdom., Busza J; Department for Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, United Kingdom., Vuckovic C; Department for Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, United Kingdom., Scott J; Centre for Academic Primary Care, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Canynge Hall, 39 Whatley Road, Bristol, BS8 2PS, United Kingdom., Hope V; Public Health Institute and School of Public and Allied Health, Liverpool John Moores University, 3rd Floor Tithebarn Building, 79 Tithebarn Street, Liverpool, L2 2ER, United Kingdom., Southwell M; Coact, 2 Crescent Place Mews, Bath, BA2 2PY, United Kingdom., Wilkins L; The Health Shop, 12 Broad St, Nottingham, NG1 3AL, United Kingdom., Platt L; Department for Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, United Kingdom., Harris M; Department for Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, United Kingdom. Electronic address: Magdalena.harris@lshtm.ac.uk. |
| Πηγή: | The International journal on drug policy [Int J Drug Policy] 2026 Mar; Vol. 149, pp. 105165. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jan 28. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 9014759 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1873-4758 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09553959 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Int J Drug Policy Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: 1998- : Amsterdam ; New York : Elsevier Original Publication: Liverpool, England : International Journal on Drug Policy |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Crack Cocaine*/administration & dosage , Cocaine-Related Disorders*/epidemiology , Harm Reduction*, England/epidemiology ; Humans ; Administration, Inhalation ; Focus Groups ; Qualitative Research |
| Περίληψη: | Background: Crack cocaine use is increasingly prevalent in England, yet drug services are poorly equipped to support the needs of this population. Provision of stimulant inhalation equipment is prohibited, and workforce crack-related harm reduction knowledge is generally low. The Safe Inhalation Pipe Provision (SIPP) project piloted a crack inhalation equipment and training intervention in England. This paper explores how and in what way crack training and equipment provision influences engagement with drug service providers. Methods: SIPP is a mixed-method study, comprising a before-and-after survey, service monitoring data, qualitative interviews, focus groups, and observations. Here we report qualitative data generated with people who use crack and providers at three intervention and three comparison group sites. We conducted a thematic analysis and report themes specific to contact and engagement with drug services. Results: Prior to intervention implementation, little adequate crack-specific support was identified. SIPP equipment provision facilitated increased contact and/or disclosure of crack use with services. Workforce training enhanced communication and relationship-building opportunities, enabling disclosure of additional need and commensurate provision or linkage to health and social supports. The capacity for contact to facilitate engagement was impacted by organisational and structural constraints, and for some populations barriers to access remain entrenched. Conclusions: Provision of crack inhalation equipment can facilitate new contacts with services among a highly marginalised population. Complementary workforce training helps to enable relationship building and engagement opportunity. Additional methods of provision, including through peer networks, are required to support people for whom barriers to service access remain. Trial Registration: ISRCTN12541454 https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN12541454. (Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: The SIPP study was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. The SIPP kits were provided free of charge by Exchange Supplies, a project partner, as NIHR does not fund intervention components. Mat Southwell reports a relationship with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime that includes: consulting or advisory. Given his role as co-guest editor, Mat Southwell had no involvement in the peer review of this article and had no access to information regarding its peer review. Full responsibility for the editorial process for this article was delegated to another journal editor. Co-author [JS] is a co-investigator (costed at 5 % to their institution) of the PReP in Pharmacies study which received funding from Gilead. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Crack cocaine; Drug legislation; Drug paraphernalia; Harm reduction; Service access; Service engagement; Stimulant use |
| Molecular Sequence: | ISRCTN ISRCTN12541454 |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Crack Cocaine) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260129 Date Completed: 20260701 Latest Revision: 20261020 |
| Update Code: | 20261020 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.drugpo.2026.105165 |
| PMID: | 41610679 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1873-4758 |
|---|---|
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.drugpo.2026.105165 |