National Drugs Forum 2025: Adapting to change: meeting new demands in drug services

Thursday, 13 November 2025, 9:30am to 4pm, in Croke Park, Dublin

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Quality standards, methods of quality assurance and evaluation tools are well established parts of the response to the drugs situation in European countries. Together they contribute to a process of continuous improvement and provide an opportunity for practitioners to reflect on their work and measure the extent to which a service’s objectives have been realised.

Standards cover aspects of service planning and implementation such as qualifications, professional training, adherence to human rights principles and the use of interventions that are soundly based on scientific evidence. The drug phenomenon is very different to that faced by many services at the time they were established. Changes in the demography and patterns of drug use, the adaptability of the drugs market and the astonishing range of substances available will require greater diversity in approaches to demand reduction and preparedness to deal with unanticipated harms. Regionalisation and the implementation of Slàintecare will require new administrative and reporting arrangements.

Adaptation will involve diagnosis of problems, such as meeting new service needs, better communications and improving service outcomes. During this year’s National Drugs Forum we will learn how other countries have approached the task of service improvement and what regionalisation has meant for a number of EU Member States. The opportunity to share international experience will provide examples of innovative approaches to implementing quality standards and prepare for the challenges ahead. 

View the above PDF document for the full programme, or see the National Drugs Forum 2025 webpage.