Alcohol abuse should be included in the National Drugs Strategy remit, according to a review submission from the inter-agency drug group in the North Western Health Board region.
With only an estimated five people receiving methadone treatment from GPs in the north-west, the inter-agency group stressed that legal substances such as inhalants, prescribed drugs and alcohol should be seriously addressed.
The group, which includes health board workers, gardai, customs officials, probation officers, teachers, parents, vintners and youth groups, also pointed to young people's anecdotal evidence that cannabis, ecstasy and small amounts of cocaine are available in the region.
"However, the strongest point made by our group, and one on which there was total consensus, was that alcohol is the drug which causes most harm in our population, and it should be included in any co-ordinated strategy to reduce harm in communities," said the submission.
Ms Bernie Hyland, the drug strategy co-ordinator for the north-west, said links should be made between the National Alcohol Policy and any new drugs strategy. She said health workers in the region were worried that teenagers viewed drugs like cannabis as commonplace.
Commenting on the recent heroin scare, Ms Hyland said the Government was "not good at looking where the ball will land next". She cited a trend in Canada in the mid-1990s when a similar contamination of the heroin supply meant users switched to injecting cocaine.
"Because there is a need to inject more with cocaine, addicts needed more needles and many of them began to share again, leading to more blood-borne diseases. We should learn from others countries' experiences and be ready for any of these developments here," she said.
According to Ms Hyland, the Government should consider dividing the new strategy into two parts, with one half devoted to tackling the heroin problem and a second dealing with a broad strategy for the State.