Caring for problem drug users.
In the U.K. approximately four million people use at least one illicit drug each year. One million of them use Class A drugs, such as heroin and crack cocaine (European Association for the Treatment of Addiction, 2003). Accurate statistics reflecting the precise numbers of drug users are difficult to quantify, partly because many drug users do not access services and partly because of the multiple definitions of problem drug use. However, it is estimated that there are approximately 287,670 problem drug users in England (U.K. Focal Point, 2004).
Central Nervous System Depressants↗