Loss of materials and resources for addiction researchers: comment on Mitchell et al. (2012).

The Editorial in Addiction on 2 August by Mitchell et al [1] on the closure of addiction libraries highlights an issue that has been going on for a decade or more. It is only part of a wider phenomenon of equal interest to researchers in the addictions field, especially in respect of drugs. The authors have rightly flagged up in respect of the UK the downsizing/closing of specialist addiction libraries such as those maintained by Alcohol Concern and DrugScope (formerly SCODA and ISDD). Not only were they unique repositories for published and 'grey' literature, they were also able to provide guidance and assistance to researchers trying to locate 'hard to find' publications. To a certain but limited extent, ELISAD and SALIS have been able to assist individual researchers, such as myself, in this respect. These and other networks are an invaluable source of knowledge and expertise which need support financially. However, it is also important to remark on the downsizing/closure of libraries maintained by Government departments. In the UK context, some of these held unique collections of documents, as well as published books and statistical volumes, of relevance to historians of addictions policy and students of drug epidemiology. have either totally disappeared or had the resources allocated to them severely reduced as a response to successive budgetary cuts. For someone like myself, a former member of the Home Office Drugs & Alcohol Research Unit, who worked on Home Office drug statistics between 1987 and 2002, with an interest in the history and evolution of addiction and substance use in the UK, the departmental library was well staffed with experienced librarians and held an extensive stock of official publications covering the UK Government's annual reports on drugs to the League of Nations and United Nations, historic volumes relating to the period of the " Opium Wars " and subsequent development of international narcotics controls, Home Office statistical bulletins, as well as books on various aspects of addiction, and unpublished documents and reports. However, in 2005, when the Headquarter s building moved from Queen Anne's Gate to its current location in Marsham Street the resources allocated to the library were reduced. As a result many of the items of interest relating to the evolution of addiction policies and drug epidemiology were disposed of. It is unfortunate that at the time, specialist addiction libraries such as that maintained by DrugScope were unable to …