Gender and regional differences in client characteristics among substance abuse treatment clients in the Europe

Abstract

Aims: To assesses the extent of the gender gap among the treated population of drug users across Europe.

Methods: This analysis reports data on 363,170 clients from 4647 treatment units in 23 countries (22 European Union member states and Switzerland).

Findings: Overall, males outnumber females by four, but the gender ratio varies not only by geographical region/country, but also by drug. In the majority of countries, the most common primary problem drug is opioids, and the overall gender ratio mirrors the gender ratio of opioid users. In some countries, a considerable proportion of treated drug users have cannabis and stimulants (cocaine/amphetamines/methamphetamines) as primary problem drugs. Stimulants other than cocaine and other drugs have lower, while cannabis has a higher than overall male-to-female gender ratio.

Conclusions: The very high male-to-female gender ratios may reveal differential access to treatment. Our findings highlight the need to assess access to treatment for women problem drug users and to make women-focussed programmes more available to increase the proportion of women in drug treatment programmes across Europe.