Drug selling among drug misusers before intake to treatment and 1-year follow-up : results from the National Treatment Outcome Research Study (NTORS)

FRANÇAIS :
1075 toxicomanes anglais ont été interrogés sur leur implication dans des activités de trafic et d'autres activités criminelles, au cours des trois mois précédant leur entrée en traitement. Un grand nombre de délits de vente de drogues est officiellement rapporté pendant cette période mais seulement un tiers des patients disent avoir vendu de la drogue et surtout de manière occasionnelle. En fait, la majorité de ces délits (89%) sont imputables à une minorité de personnes (7%). Ces derniers témoignent de modes d'usage des drogues différents : usage plus fréquents mais dépendance moins sévère et alcoolisations moins nombreuses ; en quelque sorte une approche plus " professionnelle ". La réduction des activités de deal est observée, pour les patients en traitement résidentiel et pour ceux inclus dans les programmes méthadone. La criminalité a ainsi pu être réduite parallèlement à la réduction de la consommation d'héroïne.
ENGLISH :
Drug misusers recruited to the National Treatment Outcome Research Study were interviewed at intake to treatment programmes throughout England (n = 1075), and -it-ter I year (n = 753). Data were collected on self-reported involvement in and frequency of drug-selling activities and other crimes during the 90-day periods prior to each interview. A huge number of drug-selling offences (39 153) was reported prior to intake. Fewer than one-third of the clients (29%) reported selling drugs during the 90 days prior to intake, and among those clients who had sold drugs, drug selling was an infrequent and occasional activity. Most clients reported not selling drugs. A small minority (7%) committed the majority (89%) of drug-selling offences. These high-rate drug sellers reported different patterns of substance misuse to other drug sellers, including more frequent use of heroin but less severe dependence upon heroin, and less frequent drinking. The involvement of these high- rate drug sellers may reflect a more 'professional' approach to dealing. Reductions in drug-selling were found for clients from both residential and methadone programmes. Overall, the number of dealing offences at I vear was reduced to a less than one-fifth of intake levels and the rate of involvement in crime was also reduced to less than two-thirds of intake levels. Reductions in drug selling were associated,with reductions in regular heroin use. (Author's abstract.)