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Drugs and Delinquency: A Four Year Follow-up of Drug Clinic Patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Alistair M. Gordon
Alistair M. Gordon*
Affiliation:
Academic Department of Psychiatry, St Mary's Hospital, Harrow Road, London W9 3RL
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Abstract

The addiction and conviction status of 60 male patients, examined at a London drug clinic in 1970 was reassessed at four-year follow-up. Forty-three per cent had become abstinent, 23 per cent remained dependent and 15 per cent had died. Ninety-seven per cent had received a court conviction and 73 per cent were convicted during follow-up. A prognostic assessment was determined in combined terms of continued addiction and continued delinquency. Poor outcome related to a lack of educational attainment, earlier first conviction and regular opiate use on arrival, and was associated during follow-up with an irregular clinic attendance beyond one year, drug conviction and death. Good outcome related to an absence of parental loss and later first conviction, and was associated during follow-up with discharge within one year without hospital admission. Analysis of the data indicates the value of combining forensic information with drug history in prognostic assessment.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 132 , Issue 1 , January 1978 , pp. 21 - 26
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1978 

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