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Research: Engaging people with lived experience of substance use
Including people with lived experience of substance use throughout the research process.
Summary
Research summary
Our Substance Use and Associated Behaviours (SUAB) research group leads on studies that inspire change in policy and practice through local, national and international collaboration.
We seek to effectively engage with individuals and communities who use substances, or who are affected by other people’s substance use. This helps us capture a range of voices – some rarely heard – to help build a detailed picture of substance use in the 21st century.
We try to involve people with lived experience in all stages of the research process, from study design to dissemination. Our belief is that people with such experience have a great deal to teach us and we have a great deal to learn from them.
Developed in collaboration with Voicebox Inc, our strategy is set out in Involving People with Lived Experience in Research and Knowledge Exchange (PERKE).
Our studies include:
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establishing an advisory group of people with alcohol and other drug problems receiving end-of-life care to understand the challenges they face
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capturing the experiences of a diverse range of people who use drugs by offering various ways to get involved – such as interviews, group discussions, poetry writing and blogs
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speaking to people who use drugs and the professionals working with them to get insights into Greater Manchester’s drug use trends and challenges
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working with the image and performance enhancing drug use communities to deliver an innovative UK-wide research project
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working with a specialist engagement company to ensure people feel comfortable and valued when sharing their experiences to get the truest picture
Through our engagement projects, we aim to inform policy making and support service development locally, nationally and internationally.
Research outputs
Project websites
- End of life care for people with alcohol and other drug problems: People with experience summary report
- Drug Policy Voices 2021
- GM Trends: Testing and research on emerging and new drug trends
- Annabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS) research
Academic papers
- Galvani, S, Templeton, L, and Peacock, M (2021) When “good enough” isn’t good enough: Interdisciplinary perspectives on caring for adults using substances at the end of life. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction
- Bates, G, Shepherd, S and McVeigh, J (2021) Harm reduction strategies for androgen users: providing appropriate support and improving engagement with healthcare. Current Opinion in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity
- Gray, P, Ralphs, R and Williams, L (2021) The use of synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs) within the homeless population: motivations, harms and the implications for developing an appropriate response Addiction Research and Theory, 29(1), pp1-10
- Ralphs, R, Gray, P and Sutcliffe, OB (2021) The impact of the 2016 Psychoactive Substances Act on synthetic cannabinoid use within the homeless population: Markets, content and user harms International Journal of Drug Policy, 97, p103305
- Gibbs, N, Salinas, M and Turnock, L (2021) Post‐industrial masculinities and gym culture: Graft, craft, and fraternity. The British Journal of Sociology
- Clayson, A and Galvani, S,(2019) Involving People with Lived Experience in Research and Knowledge Exchange (PERKE)
- Askew, R, and Salinas, M (2019) Status, stigma and stereotype: How drug takers and drug suppliers avoid negative labelling by virtue of their ‘conventional’ and ‘law-abiding’ lives. Criminology and Criminal Justice, 19(3), pp 311–327
- McVeigh, J, Hearne, E and Boardley, I et al (2021) Generating evidence on the use of Image and performance enhancing drugs in the UK: results from a scoping review and expert consultation by the Anabolic Steroid UK network Harm Reduction Journal, 18, 107
Team
Research team
Lead researchers
Collaborating with:
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VoiceBox Inc.
Funding
With funding from
![UK Economic and Social Research Council logo](/sites/default/files/styles/logo_scalable/public/2021-05/ESRC%2Blogo.png?itok=PsG-Cxsr)
Economic & Social Research Council
![Manchester City Council logo](/sites/default/files/styles/logo_scalable/public/2020-07/manchester-city-council.png?itok=-1o7g7Ai)
Manchester City Council
![Greater Manchester Combined Authority Logo](/sites/default/files/styles/logo_scalable/public/2021-03/GMCA.png?itok=5MVM7mya)
Grtr Manchester Combined Authority
![Logo of the National Institute for Health Research](/sites/default/files/styles/logo_scalable/public/2021-12/NIHR.png?itok=Qw3zJ4qF)
Institute for Health Research
Contact
Contact us
For general enquiries about our Substance Use and Associated Behaviours group, contact its leads Prof Jim McVeigh or Prof Rob Ralphs.