- Queensland leading the nation, committing to supporting drug checking on an ongoing basis.
- The Miles Labor Government is investing nearly $1 million to fund the delivery and evaluation of drug checking services in Queensland over the next two years.
- Queensland’s first fixed-site drug checking service has opened at its Bowen Hills location and will offer services every Friday.
- Pill testing is free, voluntary and completely confidential.
Queensland’s first fixed-site drug checking (also known as pill testing) service, CheQpoint, has opened its doors in Bowen Hills.
Drug checking services are free, voluntary, and confidential. They involve testing the substances a person intends to use and providing a health intervention aimed at reducing risks associated with illicit drug use by helping people make informed choices.
Following the success of the event-based service at the recent Rabbits Eat Lettice festival, this fixed pill testing service option marks an important next step in the government’s strategic approach to reducing illicit drug-related harms.
The CheQpoint drug checking service is a partnership between the Queensland Injectors Health Network, The Loop Australia, and the Queensland Injectors Voice for Advocacy and Action.
They will deliver fixed-site services at two locations in southeast Queensland, alongside at least one festival-based service in 2024.
These Queensland based providers have a long-standing history of delivering specialist alcohol and other drug treatment and harm reduction to Queenslanders, including dedicated peer supports.
The addition of fixed site services improves access to drug checking for more people, more regularly.
The State Government has also engaged the University of Queensland’s Institute for Social Science Research to evaluate the services and develop a statewide monitoring framework for drug checking.
Harm Reduction Australia (operating as Pill Testing Australia) has also been engaged to provide a number of festival-based services throughout 2024 and 2025 and delivered the service at the Rabbits Eat Lettuce festival.
At the festival, a total of 257 festivalgoers visited the drug checking service over the four days. Some attendees came individually, while others attended in groups.
The average age of patrons who used the service at the festival was between 28-30 years old.
Planning for the second fixed site is underway and will involve co-design processes with people with lived experience of substance use, potential service users and other key stakeholders.
