Focus

Pompidou Group will take part in the 62nd CND Session

As in previous years, the Pompidou Group will take part in the 62nd Session (Vienna, 14-22 March 2019) of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND).

During the Ministerial Segment (14-15 March), which will take stock of the implementation of the international commitments made to counter the world drug problem, the Portuguese Presidency will deliver a statement on behalf of the Pompidou Group.

On the occasion of the 62nd CND Session, the Pompidou Group is co-sponsoring four high-profile side events:

• Spearheading Prison Health Reforms in Eastern Europe
  (18 March, 2.20-3.10 p.m., Room M6), organised by the Governments of the Republic of Moldova and Romania
   
• Opioid Dependence Syndrome: A Regulatory Framework Assuring Access to Treatment
  (19 March, 9.00-9.50 a.m., Press Room), organised by the Governments of Malta, Switzerland and Portugal
   
• Psychoactive Substances and the SDGs – Towards a Comprehensive Approach in the Era of the 2030 Agenda
  (19 March, 9.00-9.50 a.m., Room MBR-A), organised by the Government of Slovenia, Utrip Institute for Research and Development and IOGT International
   
• Drug Prevention Approaches That Make a Difference
  (19 March, 2.20-3.10 p.m., Room M6), organised by the Governments of Serbia and Iceland

A stand of the Pompidou Group with publications and materials presenting the Group’s work will be located in the M0E building on level O.
 

• Pompidou Group statement
• More information on the 62nd CND Session

Pompidou Group Guidance Paper on Psychosocial Support

Approximately 60-70% of the general population experience a traumatic event at some point in their lifetime, which can include forms of violence, abuse, neglect and war. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Substance Use Disorders (SUD) are often concurrent and develop as a result of a person being exposed to a traumatic event.

Therefore, part of providing adequate health service is responding correctly to the effects of trauma.

The latest Pompidou Group paper addresses this issue, by providing guidance on psychosocial support to tackle trauma-related symptoms and related substance use disorders, in particular among refugees, internally displaced persons and war veterans as groups especially vulnerable to PTSD.