Women injecting drug users in London: the extent and nature of their contact with drug and health services

Abstract

Improved access to drug treatment and other health services remains central to HIV prevention and other harm reduction strategies among injecting drug users (IDUs) in the UK. Efforts have therefore been focused upon making such services more accessible and 'user friendly'. Women who use drugs are considered a 'hard to reach' population. This is largely based on data from a variety of official sources which have suggested that women are under-represented as clients of drug services. While current literature provides numerous explanations for this, there have been few empirical studies exploring the nature and extent of women's contact with such services. This paper presents findings from an European Community funded survey of women IDUs in London. Data from this survey suggest that women IDUs have surprisingly high levels of contact with a range of specialist and generic health services in relation to their drug use.