Disproportionate, differential and targeted treatment: people who use drugs' experiences of policing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, governments worldwide introduced law enforcement measures to deter and punish breaches of emergency public health orders. For example, in Victoria, Australia, discretionary fines of A$1,652 were issued for breaching stay-at-home orders, and A$4,957 fines for 'unlawful gatherings'; to date, approximately 30,000 fines remain outstanding or not paid in full. Studies globally have revealed how the expansion of policing powers produced significant collateral damage for marginalized populations, including people from low-income neighboorhoods, Indigenous Peoples, sex workers, and people from culturally diverse backgrounds.

Australian Community Pharmacists' Preparedness to Offer and Discuss Hepatitis C Testing and Treatment With Pharmacy Clients: A Representative Cross-Sectional Survey.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has set goals to eliminate hepatitis C (HCV) as a global health threat by 2030. To meet this goal, Australia must increase testing and diagnosis, including expanding access to care through community pharmacists. This study aims to explore community pharmacists' preparedness to discuss and offer HCV testing and treatment.

Feasibility and acceptability of multiple methods of recording injecting drug use episode data among people who inject drugs in Melbourne, Australia: a pilot evaluation study protocol.

Introduction: Opioid overdose and blood-borne virus transmission are key health risks for people who inject drugs. Existing study methods that record data on injecting drug risks mostly rely on retrospective self-reporting that, while valid, are limited to being broad and subject to recall bias. The In-The-Moment-Expanded (ITM-Ex) study will evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of multiple novel data collection methods to capture in situ drug injecting data.

Practical solutions to resolve social barriers to hepatitis C treatment initiation among people who inject drugs: a qualitative study.

Background: We aimed to identify motivators for people who inject drugs to pursue treatment for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and uncover opportunities that could make treatment more appealing.

Methods: Between November 2023 and January 2024, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 HCV RNA-positive individuals with a history of injecting drug use and self-reported as either untreated or treated but delayed treatment for more than 6 months. Thematic and framework data analysis was employed and interpreted using the Capability, Opportunity and Motivation (COM-B) framework of behaviour change.