UP TO half a million people in Australia are missing out on treatment for alcohol and other drug use disorders, Australian researchers have found.
Using results from various studies on drug use in Australia, the team from the University of NSW calculated how many people are likely have a substance use disorder.
They then subtracted the number of people they estimated would not need or seek treatment, which they calculated as around 40% of the cohort.
With around 200,000 people currently receiving treatment, which they suggest only makes up 30-48% of the people who need it, that means between 200,000 and 500,000 are missing out, the researchers said.
The findings are consistent with other research.
The team also pointed out that people who meet the diagnostic criteria but are not included in the treatment estimates are likely to still benefit from some form of intervention.
They proposed that a less intensive intervention, possibly provided in a primary care setting, may be adequate.
The researchers also considered another population - those who don't meet diagnostic criteria but are consuming in risky quantities.
If they were to seek intervention, and resources allowed, they would benefit from early treatment.
"The findings from this analysis highlight the continued significant unmet treatment needs of people with substance use disorders," wrote the authors in Drug and Alcohol Review.
"Alcohol and other drug treatment is significantly underfunded and underresourced.
"Treatment resources need to be doubled in order to address this unmet treatment population," they concluded.
Read the paper HERE.
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