The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) welcomes the public release of modelling tools that can be used to calculate the level of drug and alcohol treatment services required, based on the population needs for each Australian State or Territory.

The documents include:

 Drug and Alcohol Service Planning Model for Australia: Technical Manual
 Drug and Alcohol Service Planning Model: Final Report
 Estimator tool: National DA-CCP Model

“Addiction is a complex health issue,” RACP President of the Chapter of Addiction Medicine, A/Prof Adrian Reynolds said.

“The medical profession is calling for increased funding to address the limited availability of alcohol and other drug services, and suitably trained clinicians, across Australia.

“Research into unmet demand for treatment in Australia estimates are that each year, between 200,000 and 500,000 people who need treatment are not able to access it.

“We welcome the release of these modelling tools that can be used by experts to arrive at informed estimates about the need for and availability of suitable high quality drug and alcohol services in their regions.

“Specialists in the drug and alcohol field want to work with the Australian Government to develop evidence-based solutions to address the problems identified by this research.”