1248.0 - Australian Standard Classification of Drugs of Concern, 2011
Latest ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 06/07/2011
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Form of Drug Method of Drug Use FORM OF DRUG As noted in the Overview, the main classification structure of the ASCDC is designed to classify chemical substances which alter physiological processes. However, many collectors and users of data relating to drugs of concern require information on the physical form of a drug as well as on the chemical substance which produces the psychoactive effect. For conceptual and practical reasons, it is not appropriate to include these different elements of drug use in a single classification as this would create an overly complex classification structure. The Form of Drug classification is intended to be used in conjunction with the main classification structure to address another aspect of information relating to drugs and to assist in creating a coherent statistical framework for the collection, storage and dissemination of data derived from a range of statistical, administrative and service provision settings. It allows data relating to drugs of concern to be further defined without compromising the principles of the main classification structure. Form of Drug is intuitively defined by reference to the categories of the classification. For instance, the form 'Oil' is readily distinguishable from the form 'Powder' without further definition. Nevertheless, for the purposes of this classification, Form of Drug is defined as:
The need for and usefulness of the Form of Drug classification can be illustrated by reference to cannabis. In the Type of Drug classification structure all forms of cannabis are included in the category 7101 Cannabinoids, no distinction being made between crops of plants (whole plant), leaf and hashish. Using the Form of Drug classification it is possible to code the different forms of Cannabinoids as follows:
The category 98 Part plant-vegetable matter, may not appear to be mutually exclusive of categories 02 Leaf, 03 Flower-head, 04 Root and 05 Seed. Category 98 is used when a drug of concern is encountered (usually cannabis) that consists of or includes more than one single category of the Form of Drug classification covering the parts of a plant (i.e. 02 Leaf and 03 Flower-head). Similarly, 08 Oil has been excluded from the category 07 Liquid. Oils are a group of neutral liquids comprising three main classes: fixed (fatty) acids; mineral oils; and essential oils, of which the last two are associated with drugs of concern. The usefulness of the Form of Drug classification is further illustrated by reference to cocaine. Cocaine is generally sold on the street as a crystalline hydrochloride powder, but through a process called 'freebasing' crack cocaine is formed. The two forms are distinguished in the Form of Drug classification as follows:
Apart from conceptual considerations, separation of the information items (active chemical compound and form of drug) has the advantage of allowing data to be collected and used for the particular item of interest. The ABS therefore recommends that data be collected, coded, and stored for each variable separately. This allows data from organisations which collect both sets of information to be compared with data from organisations which only collect information on one of the variables. Organisations which require drug-related data further defined in terms of the form of the drug can do so by cross tabulating variables. The ABS therefore recommends that data be coded and stored in separate fields as follows:
Many collectors and users of statistical, administrative and service provision data relating to drugs of concern require information on the method used to administer a drug as well as data on the chemical substance which produces the psychoactive effect of the drug and on the physical form of the drug. For conceptual reasons, it is not possible to include these different elements of drug use in a single classification as this would create an overly complex classification structure. In order to meet the need to collect and classify information relating to the method of drug use, the ABS has adopted the classification developed for use in the National Minimum Data Set for Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Services, sponsored by the Intergovernmental Committee for Drugs. This classification was originally developed by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) and was included in the National Health Data Dictionary, Version 9 (NHDD), in association with the data element Method of Use for Principal Drug of Concern. The Method of Drug Use classification is intended for use in conjunction with the main classification structure to address another aspect of information relating to drugs and to assist in creating a coherent statistical framework for the collection, storage and dissemination of data derived from a range of statistical, administrative and service provision settings. It allows data relating to drugs of concern to be further defined without compromising the principles of the main classification structure. Method of Drug Use is intuitively defined by reference to the categories of the classification. For instance, the method 'Injects' is readily distinguishable from the method 'Smokes' without further definition. Nevertheless for the purposes of this classification, Method of Drug Use is defined as: 'The usual method of administering the drug of concern.' Apart from conceptual considerations, separation of the information items (active chemical compound and method of drug use) has the advantage of allowing data to be collected and used for the particular item of interest. The ABS therefore recommends that data be collected, coded, and stored for each variable separately. This allows data from organisations which collect both sets of information to be compared with data from organisations which only collect information on one of the variables. Organisations which require drug-related data further defined in terms of the method of drug use can do so by cross tabulating variables. The ABS therefore recommends that data be coded and stored in separate fields as follows:
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