A grieving mother turned advocate by accident says New South Wales must catch up with other states in implementing a pill testing program, unanimously saying: “It will save lives.”
It’s been more than four years since New South Wales woman Jennie Ross-King lost her 19-year-old daughter Alex after she overdosed on three MDMA capsules at the Parramatta-based FOMO music festival.
During a 2019 investigation into deaths at Sydney music festivals, it was revealed that Alex had told friends she had unwittingly taken the fatal dose before entering the event because she was afraid of being caught by police.
Ross-King, who says she is not pro-drug and has never used illicit drugs, believes her daughter’s death could have been prevented if she had been better informed and educated about the signs of an overdose, as well as the dangers of mixing MDMA and alcohol.
It’s one of the reasons he has advocated for drug testing services, more commonly known as pill testing, where users can freely and legally have their substances analyzed to determine their composition, purity and, in some cases, their potency. , before having a conversation with a doctor. professional trained in damage and risk minimization.
“What better time to have a peer-to-peer conversation with a medical expert than when they have that pill in their hand,” says Ms. Ross-King, speaking to NewsWire.
‘It’s when a young person really stops for a minute and asks themselves, ‘Wait a minute, is this going to hurt me? And if it could, what do I do about it?’
‘There were screenshots on his phone of the symptoms of an MDMA overdose, such as overheating and dizziness, but that’s not the same as getting that information from someone credible and in a lab coat.’
Jennie Ross-King (right), a grieving mother who became an advocate by accident, says New South Wales needs to catch up with other states in implementing a pill testing program
Alex’s death also highlighted how little Ross-King herself knew about drugs, meaning she was unable to hold conversations about risk management and what to do if she overdosed.
“There are very few things I regret in life, but I really wish I had taken drugs when I was young, because I would have had a little more experience, knowledge and credibility, and Alex would have been able to come and talk to me about it,” he says. .
‘I wish I had told him that. Then we could have explored it together, talked about the possible effects and what to do if things went wrong.
‘The conversation I had with Alex (about drugs) would look very different today, with the information I know now.’
Ms Ross-King’s comments come as Victorian Premier Jacinta Allen suddenly announced that free, legal mobile drug testing services would be used at 10 sites during the summer festival period, and that a permanent facility It would be operational from mid-2025.
In April this year, Queensland also opened a permanent site in the Brisbane CBD suburb of Bowen Hills, following the success of the ACT’s CanTEST program which launched in 2022.
In light of Victoria’s change of heart, a state that has also historically been against drug testing, advocates have put pressure on New South Wales Premier Chris Minns to consider further reforms as well.
However, the Prime Minister has delayed further changes until after the promised drugs summit, the date of which has yet to be announced, much to the anger of community groups.
Ms Ross-King said she wished she and Alex could talk more freely about drugs.
The Loop chief executive Cameron Francis says the Victorian government’s decision leaves New South Wales “to its own devices”.
The organisation operates New South Wales’ first drug-testing pilot at the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) in Kings Cross, as part of a research project with the University of New South Wales, as well as Queensland’s Bowen Hills site.
‘Drug control is a really common sense solution. “It’s already been proven in Australia and several times overseas,” she says.
“I really feel sorry for friends and family who have lost people at festivals, or those who have lost loved ones to drugs, because we shouldn’t have to wait for another high-profile tragedy to make this policy a reality.”
Vocal drug reform campaigners Uniting NSW. ACT’s general manager of advocacy and external relations Emma Maiden says the organisation would offer its churches to host community services.
“The summer festival season will be here before we know it and we should take the time now to plan a really good response,” he said.
Ms Maiden said Victoria and Queensland had enacted “common sense decisions” without “the need for a Drugs Summit”.
‘It was gratifying to hear the Victorian Premier say that through drug testing ‘if it saves one life it will be worth it’, because that’s what we’ve been saying.
During a 2019 investigation into deaths at Sydney music festivals, it was revealed that Alex (pictured) had told friends she had unwittingly taken the fatal dose before entering the event because she was afraid of being caught by police.
‘Mrs Allan did not need a summit on drugs because the reality is that the evidence is there and the truth is that if one life is saved, it will be worth it.
“We hope the NSW government will look at the evidence and not have to wait for a process to implement sensible evidence-based policy.”
Asked for comment, Mr Minns did not respond to direct questions about whether NSW would consider measures around drug control, however he has historically not ruled out potential reform.
He also declined to say when the state will announce its drug summit.
‘The biggest issue affecting families in New South Wales right now is the cost of living. That has to be the focus of this government,’ she stated.
“Funding is in the budget and when we have details to announce, we will do so.”
Health Minister Ryan Park said planning for the summit was underway.
“I can assure the community that this summit is fully funded and work is being done to ensure we get it right,” he said.