Integrated Monitoring System Annual Report - Cheshire and Merseyside, 2016-17

The annual report for the Integrated Monitoring System (IMS) details activity across Merseyside and Cheshire over the period of the 2016-17 financial year. The report provides information on presentations to needle and syringe programmes (NSPs) and other low threshold interventions delivered to individuals using drugs and/or alcohol, focussing on areas such as wellbeing, demographics and substances used. The data is presented in three distinct cohort groups; 1) individuals injecting psychoactive drugs, 2) individuals injecting steroids/IPEDs, 3) individuals accessing support related to alcohol or non-injecting drug use. Data from IMS is also cross-matched with the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) and the Criminal Justice Dataset to provide a complete picture of activity within each of the nine Local Authority areas in Cheshire and Merseyside. The report also provides an overview of published and future research in the field at both a local and national level.