Injection drug users, crack-cocaine users, and human services utilization: an exploratory study

Estimates of the number of people addicted to heroin and cocaine run into the millions. How these drug abusers interact with the social services system is not well understood. To gain insight into the nature and extent of such interactions, an exploratory study was conducted to gather information on the perceptions and utilization of human services by 44 drug abusers not in treatment. Twenty-nine injection drug users and 15 crack-cocaine users participated in focus group sessions and structured interviews. Participants were recruited by indigenous outreach workers in Dayton and Columbus, Ohio. Findings revealed a very high rate of service use by the drug users. The results raise questions about the role and efficacy of the social services system in identifying drug users and addressing their needs. In addition, the findings raise perplexing questions regarding the effectiveness of acquired immune deficiency syndrome risk-reduction efforts among injection drug users and crack-cocaine users.