Australia is experiencing an ‘epidemic’ of methamphetamine use
Task A (About 550 words)
Please refer to the table below. You are going to investigate three perceptions regarding
methamphetamines by answering the questions in column 1. To answer the questions you will need
to use the corresponding data sources (Reliable Health Data) provided in Column 2. You must back
up all of your answers with the relevant data (briefly) and reference the source(s) of the data
appropriately.
Questions to be answered based on evidence
Reliable health data
(government reports
peer-reviewed journal articles)
Perception: ‘Australia is experiencing an ‘epidemic’ of
methamphetamine use.’
Use Table 2.2 on page 9 of the report opposite to answer the
following questions:
1. What percentage of the Australian population aged 14 years
and older had ever used methamphetamines in 2010?
2. How does the level of meth/amphetamine use compare
with levels of use of other illicit drugs?
3. (a) Has the level of ‘ever use’ of meth/amphetamines
increased between 2007 and 2010 (the most recent data
available)?
(b) What does the longer term trend (i.e. from 2001 to
2010) indicate?
4. Based on your answers to the above questions, do the data
indicate that “Australia is experiencing an epidemic of
methamphetamine use”? (Briefly explain your answer)
Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare (2011). 2010 National Drug
Strategy Household Survey Report.
(http://www.aihw.gov.au/WorkArea/Dow
nloadAsset.aspx?id=10737421314)
Perception: ‘Ice use is responsible for a large and increasing
number of ambulance call-outs in Victoria.’
5. Is the number of ice-related ambulance call-outs in Victoria
increasing? (You should mention what is happening in
metro areas as well as what is happening in regional Victoria
in your answer.)
6. Is ice responsible for a large proportion of drug-related
(legal and illicit) ambulance call-outs in Victoria?
7. Based on your responses to questions 5 and 6, what do you
conclude about the perception ‘Ice use is responsible for a
large and increasing number of ambulance call-outs in
Victoria’?
Hellbronn, C, Gao, CX, Lloyd, B, Smith,
K, Best, D, Lubman, DI. (2013). Trends
in amphetamine-related harms in
Victoria. Medical Journal of Australia,
199 (6): 395.
Lloyd, B (2014). Trends in alcohol and
drug related ambulance attendances
in Victoria 2012/13,
summary. Turning Point Alcohol and
Drug Centre.
(http://www.turningpoint.org.au/site/Def
aultSite/filesystem/documents/TP.amboc
allout.reportsummary.080514.pdf)
Perception: ‘Ice is the drug that is responsible for the majority
of drug-related violence in Australia.’
8. Which drugs (legal and illicit) are related to the majority of
‘king hit’ fatalities in Australia?
9. Does the data from the Pilgrim et al (2014) study support
the perception that ‘Ice is the drug that is responsible for
the majority of drug-related violence in Australia? (Briefly
include your reason).
Data are available on a specific form
of violence that is often drug-related;
namely, ‘king hit’ fatalities.
Pilgrim, J, Gerostamoulos, D,
Drummer, O. (2014). “King hit”
fatalities in Australia, 2000-2012: the
role of alcohol and other drugs. Drug
and Alcohol Dependence, 135: 119-
132.
Task B (About 50 words)
Health research employs both quantitative and qualitative approaches to data collection and
analysis. As you learnt in Topic 1, the type of study design and data collection methods used
depends on the specific research question you are attempting to answer. Certain research questions
(such as most of the questions in the table above) can only be answered using quantitative research
designs and methods; while other research questions require the use of qualitative research designs
and methods.
10 (a) Develop ONE research question related to the use of methamphetamines in Victoria. Your
question must be a reasonably feasible research question which requires QUANTITATIVE methods to
be answered.
10 (b) Develop ONE research question related to the use of methamphetamines in Victoria. Your
question must be a reasonably feasible research question which requires QUALITATIVE methods to
be answered.
Task C: (About 200 words)
In Topic 1 you learnt about the ethical requirements of conducting health research, and the key
principles underpinning ethical health research. Illicit drug use is considered a sensitive research
topic, in part because the researcher may be investigating illegal behaviour.
This task requires you to use the Deakin University library to conduct an online search for peerreviewed
journal articles or reports (from reputable organisations) that focus specifically on the
ethical issues associated with conducting research into illicit drug use.
11. Specify the database(s) and search terms that you used to locate appropriate articles or reports.
12. Select the most relevant article you obtained in your search. Provide the full reference and
abstract of this article as an appendix in your assignment. (Note: the abstract is not included in the
word count for the assignment).
13. Select one of the research questions you developed for task B. Imagine you are a researcher
attempting to collect data in order to answer the specified research question. Three key ethical
principles are (a) respecting autonomy, (b) confidentiality and anonymity, and (c) protection from
discomfort and harm. Briefly describe an example of an ethical issue in each of these three areas
that would need to be considered when attempting to carry out the research
