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3-15. Illicit drug use

3-15-1 Illicit drug use in South Australia

3-15-2 Illicit drug use – Aboriginal people

Sources

 

3-15-1. Illicit drug use in South Australia

  • In 2013, just under one in six (15.7%) South Australians aged 14 years and older reported using drugs illicitly, including the use of pharmaceuticals for non-medical purposes, in the previous 12 months. This is comparable to the national average of 15.0%1.
  • In the 2001 survey, the reported rate in South Australia was 17.6%, but in the four subsequent three-yearly surveys the state's rate dropped and has hovered around the 15% mark since1.
  • Illicit drug use in South Australia is higher among males (18.3%) compared to females (13.2%) and peaks in the 20-29 years age cohort (28.6%)1.
  • Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug reported by South Australians aged 14 years and older (11.0%), followed by pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes (3.5%) and ecstasy (2.8%)1.
  • In 2013, South Australia ranked third-highest among the states and territories for illicit drug use by people aged 14 years and older, but there is not a great deal of variation between the states and territories – with the exception of the Northern Territory and Western Australia1.
  • Readers should note that estimates of drug use by states and territories should be interpreted with caution due to the low prevalence and smaller sample sizes for some states and territories, particularly for low prevalence drugs1.

 

Illicit use of any drug*
in previous 12 months (aged 14+ years), 2013
Region %
Metropolitan Adelaide n.a.
Country SA n.a.
South Australia 15.7%
Australia 15.0%

3-15-1

* including pharmaceuticals

Data source: AIHW 2013

 


Illicit use of any drug*
in previous 12 months (aged 14+ years), 2013
State/Territory %
New South Wales 14.2%
Victoria 14.3%
Tasmania 15.1%
Australian Capital Territory 15.3%
Queensland 15.5%
South Australia 15.7%
Western Australia 17.0%
Northern Territory 22.0%
Australia 15.0%

3-15-2

* including pharmaceuticals

N.B. Estimates of drug use by states and territories should be interpreted with caution due to the low prevalence and smaller sample sizes for some states and territories, particularly for low prevalence drugs

Data source: AIHW 2013

 

3-15-2. Illicit drug use – Aboriginal people

  • State-specific data is unavailable. However, in 2013 nationally, 24.1% of Aboriginal people aged 14 years and older reported using drugs illicitly, including the use of pharmaceuticals for non-medical purposes1.
  • This rate does not represent a statistically significant fall from the 25.0% reported in the 2010 survey, but is substantially higher than the 14.8% national average recorded for non-Aboriginal people1.

 

Sources

  1. Based on AIHW 2013, 'Online Tables 7.9-7.12 and Online Table 8.4', National Drug Strategy Household Survey detailed report 2013, Drug statistics series no. 28. Cat. no. PHE 183, viewed 27 October 2015.