Substance abuse officials, police look into appearance of new psychoactive substances

Authorities are on guard for and examining harmful new psychoactive substances (NPS) reportedly being used in Barbados.

This comes as law enforcement and drug enforcement officials carry out their own investigations.

Speaking on behalf of Minister of Home Affairs Wilfred Abrahams at a workshop on the Early Warning System Project in Response to Opioids and New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) in Latin America and the Caribbean on Tuesday, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs Yvette Gollop said the presence of NPS on the local market was of great concern to officials, given their dangerous side effects.

“NPS includes a range of drugs that are designed to mimic established illicit substances, such as cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy and LSD. However, they are much more dangerous and pose a significant public health threat, as they often contain products not intended for human consumption. Their content and full effects are typically unknown,” she said.

“NPS also creates challenges for law enforcement and drug control efforts, as they are not captured within, or prohibited by, international conventions on narcotic drugs. This is intentional, as drug producers intend to stay ahead of the law, constantly modifying the content of their products.”

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), 1182 new psychoactive substances had been submitted to their Early Warning Advisory as of December 2022. As of that date, 139 countries and territories worldwide had reported the presence of one or more NPS.

This week’s workshop, sponsored by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD), is framed as a training exercise for various stakeholders in the previously launched Early Warning System project that seeks to identify and respond more effectively to NPS.

Gollop stressed that such systems are integral in maintaining public safety in the face of new NPS threats.

“NPS requires newer, faster and more effective approaches to drug control which will ultimately protect public health and safety. Early warning systems form the foundation of such efforts because, as the name suggests, they allow for early detection, identification and prompt distribution of information about NPS within a country – particularly when the key stakeholders are included within the system. This, in turn, allows for a rapid response by all involved, including our healthcare workers, law enforcement and policy makers,” she told drug enforcement officials, health representatives, and other stakeholders at the workshop.

Meanwhile, Deputy Manager at the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) Troy Wickham told the media that his organisation along with the Government Forensic Sciences Centre were investigating the presence of the currently unidentified NPS.

He said the results should be made available by the end of the week.

Wickham also had some advice for Barbadians on identifying persons using NPS.

“For methamphetamine [an NPS], we have paranoia, hallucinations, nausea, and it can also lead to death. It’s something that is very addictive, I must say…. I want persons to be on the lookout for persons behaving strangely or abnormally,” Wickham said.

He added that the NCSA continues to be worried about drug use among the youth and officials from the Ministry of Education, as well as the leaders of the various teachers’ unions, have been made aware of the presence of NPS on the island.

(SB)