Community-backed drug initiatives in the UK: a review and commentary on evaluations.
This article presents a review of evaluations of community-backed initiatives for drug users in the UK. Community-backed responses have taken a number of approaches. Despite accessing over 250 publications relating to initiatives in the course of this study, a paucity of published evaluative evidence on 'what works?' and 'why does it work?' was apparent. The readily accessible literature is examined under five broad types of initiative: self-help groups, parents' groups, residents' groups, community development groups and diversionary activity groups. In a further commentary on evaluation issues for such drug initiatives, it is argued that they are under-evaluated, partly because they are on the margins of drug services and partly because of a lacuna of support in evaluation skills.
Department of Applied Social Science, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK. susan.eley@stir.ac.uk
Susan
S
Eley
D003156:Community Mental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D010290:Parents; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006113:United Kingdom