Doctor offers to fly thousands of kilometres to test revellers' drugs for FREE after a spate of overdose deaths at music festivals
- Dr David Caldicott offered to fly from Canberra to Darwin to provide pill testing
- The pill test would be provide free of charge to attendees of BASSINTHEGRASS
- Dr Caldicott want to provide this program to any state open to the idea
- Six Australians have died since September last year after taking illicit drugs
A doctor has offered to fly nearly 4,000km to provide free pill testing to revellers at a major music festival following a spate of overdose deaths.
Dr David Caldicott will travel from Canberra to Darwin to test pills at the BASSINTHEGRASS music festival, provided the Northern Territory government gives him the green light.
Dr Caldicott's organisation, Pill Testing Australia, wants to provide its pilot testing program to any Australian state open to the idea.
Dr Caldicott's organisation, Pill Testing Australia, wants to provide their pilot pill testing program to any Australian state open to the idea
'Colleagues have been speaking with the NT Government and there has been encouraging noises, but in the end, it basically comes down to plucking low-hanging fruit and agreeing to have a pilot,' Dr Caldicott said to NT News.
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Six Australians have died since September last year as a result of taking illicit drugs at music festivals, but many Australian state and territory governments have ruled out introducing pill testing.
Dr David Caldicott will travel nearly 4,000km from Canberra to Darwin to pill test at BASSINTHEGRASS if the Northern Territory Government lets him
Dr Cardicott has been an advocate for pill testing in Australia for nearly 20 years after watching a young man die from a drug overdose that he believed was preventable.
'The great myth about pill testing is just that we're just telling people what's in their pills,' Dr Caldicott said.
'The reality is that we know it works very well in stopping people from taking drugs - or at least changes the way they take drugs so that they don't end up in the hospital.'
Five Australians have died since September last year as a result of taking illicit drugs at music festivals but many Australian state and territory governments have ruled out introducing pill testing
A survey into party drugs found that more than 11 per cent of people aged between 20 to 29 years old and 7 per cent of 18 to 19 years old had taken illicit drugs in the previous 12 months.
According to research into ecstasy users, 70 per cent of these pills were taken at clubs, festivals and dance parties.
Pill testing research conducted in Austria found that 50 per cent of people who had their pills tested said the results affected their decision to take them.
Two-thirds of pill takers said the results of the pill test convinced them to not consume the drug and warn their friends in cases of negative results.
The arguments against pill testing, used by governments, was that it gave de facto approval to an illegal activity; and that different people tolerate drugs at different levels so pill testing risks providing a green light to people who were at greater risk.
PICTURED: SIX YOUNG REVELLERS WHO DIED FROM SUSPECTED PARTY DRUG OVERDOSES IN JUST FIVE MONTHS
MARLI CARTMER-CONGIU
Marli Cartmer-Congiu took liquid ecstasy for the first time at a house party in Sydney's inner-east on Saturday night, her friends said.
A short time later, she collapsed. Her friends called an ambulance and she was rushed to hospital, but she couldn't be saved.
ALEX ROSS-KING
Alex Ross-King, 19, died in hospital on January 12 after attending the FOMO festival at Parramatta Park.
The Central Coast teenager's family have pleaded with the NSW government to introduce pill testing reigniting the debate over its effectiveness.
JOSHUA TAM
Joshua Tam, 22, died in hospital on December 29 after attending the Lost Paradise music festival near Gosford.
His family have helped set up a clothing label in the young rugby league player's memory with proceeds going towards drug education for young Australians.
CALLUM BROSNAN
Callum Brosnan, 19, died after attending the dance music festival Knockout Games of Destiny on December 9.
He was found at a train station near the festival at Sydney Olympic Park but later died in hospital.
JOSEPH PHAM
Callum Brosnan (pictured left) and Joseph Pham (pictured right) both died after suspected drug overdoses at festivals late last year
Joseph Pham, 23, from western Sydney died in hospital from a suspected drug overdose on September 15 after the Defqon.1 festival.
Weeks before his death he shared a Facebook post from a group called 'Sniff Off' who advocate for no sniffer dogs, pill testing and drug legalisation.
DIANA NGUYEN
Diana Nguyen, a 21-year-old from Melbourne, also died after Defqon.1 on September 15 from a suspected drug overdose.
Ms Nguyen was engaged after her finance had proposed in Hawaii during her 21st birthday in April.
A coronial inquest has been launched to investigate the five deaths which occurred at music festivals.
Two more deaths may be examined at the inquest.
