OPAAK- study: Crack most used drugs on the streets

Mainline’s field workers interviewed more than 520 people about their opiate and crack use. The Trimbos Institute conducted a statistical analysis to estimate the total number of users. Crack use appears to have increased significantly among marginalised users in our country.

Mainline’s field workers interviewed people who use drugs problematically in eight cities: Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, Eindhoven, Haarlem, Groningen, and Heerlen. The aim of the study, which was commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, was to gain more insight into the size, well-being and need for assistance of the group of people who use opiates and crack in a problematic manner. The last study conducted on this in the Netherlands was more than ten years ago.

At that time, opiates such as heroin were the most commonly used drugs in this group. The new study shows that crack has now replaced opiates. In 2023, when the study was conducted, an estimated 13,300 people in the Netherlands were problematic opiate users, 89% of whom also used crack. The number of people who used crack was estimated at approximately 27,900, of whom about 16,000 used only crack and no opiates. It is striking that three-quarters of the people who only used crack had never previously used opiates regularly.

It is alarming that only 31% of people who use crack but not opiates are registered in the national addiction care registration system (LADIS). Among people who use opiates, this figure is 61%. The interviews show that crack users receive help far less often and yet are more likely to suffer from mental health problems. Around 75% of participants reported experiencing mental health problems, but only 16% use mental health services.

You can find the full report here.