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Critical analyses of health policies and practices may appear to lack practicality during unprecedented times that demand immediate solutions. This paper aims to use critical social science theories to help improve essential service delivery during a public health crisis.

This study is based on qualitative content analysis of government and scholarly sources between 2008 and 2021 to identify strengths and gaps underlying the Canadian Federal Government’s evidence-based solutions to the opioid death crisis. Key questions examined are: What constitutes best-evidence practices underlying the Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy?, Is biomedical evidence the only legitimate framework to substantiate feasible interventions? and Because the opioid death crisis affects disproportionately vulnerable populations, what is the potential merit of considering diverse knowledges and practices as valid forms of intervention despite lacking biomedical evidence bases?

While overdose reversing drugs, drug replacement approaches, biologically focused harm reduction options and pharmacological regulatory and surveillance initiatives help reduce premature opioid-related morbidity and mortality across provinces, this study’s findings demonstrate that these individualizing, biomedical magic bullets are temporary solutions, not comprehensive plans to solve a societal problem. This study’s theoretically informed analysis shows that the Canadian Federal Government responses detract attention from issues of social justice, social inequities and the biomedical dominance of health care as broader forces of the opioid death crisis. To address these analytical omissions, broader evidence-based solutions must build upon meaningful intraventions, the insiders’ perspectives or voices of the afflicted communities alongside meaningful interventions – going beyond distal, clinical-based and proximal, home-based interventions.

By highlighting the biomedical and social embeddings of the opioid death crisis, this study underscores structural conditions rather than individuals’ physical bodies as the catalysts for change. A deeper theoretical understanding of why certain issues exists, as they do and how they occur, can provide the basis for prediction of their (re)occurrence and for informing meaningful intervention efforts.

Three events of significance to this country took place in 1899 – the British Food Journal was launched, Australia retained the Ashes, and the Boer War hostilities commenced. If challenged on the order of their importance, cricketers and Empire‐builders may be excused their preference. However, looking at it purely from the standpoint of pro bono publico, the dispassionate observer must surely opt for the birth of a certain publication as being ultimately the most beneficial of the three.

Increases in deaths of despair in the USA have been associated with economic conditions and drug availability. In the state of Illinois, deaths of despair represent a significant public health issue. This study aims to examine the relationship between county-level economic distress, drug availability and mortality from deaths of despair collectively and for each contributing cause of death individually in the state of Illinois to better understand drivers of mortality locally.

Two cross-sectional analyses were conducted for 2010–2014 and 2015–2019. Correlations, regression analyses and relative weight analyses were applied to assess the relationship between deaths of despair mortality rate and the individual variables.

Deaths of despair mortality collectively and for each cause of death individually increased significantly from 2010–2014 to 2015–2019 in Illinois. Suicide mortality was higher in rural counties and was related to economic distress, while drug poisoning and alcohol-related deaths were higher in urban counties and were related to drug availability indicators.

While all three causes of death increased in the state, suicide mortality was inversely related to deaths of despair mortality. This may be because of different individual risk factors in rural versus urban areas or issues with coding cause of death. The findings of this study point to a rising public health challenge of deaths of despair mortality, particularly from substance use, in urban counties and from suicide in rural counties.

The question has been recently raised as to how far the operation of the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts of 1875, 1879, and 1899, and the Margarine Act, 1887, is affected by the Act 29 Charles II., cap. 7, “for the better observation of the Lord's Day, commonly called Sunday.” At first sight it would seem a palpable absurdity to suppose that a man could escape the penalties of one offence because he has committed another breach of the law at the same time, and in this respect law and common‐sense are, broadly speaking, in agreement; yet there are one or two cases in which at least some show of argument can be brought forward in favour of the opposite contention.

Describes the life history of the British Food Journal, its changing editorial team, ownership and editorial focus. The authors have used much wider source material than the archives of the journal, now in its 100th year. The journal was always closely identified with the safety of food, its adulteration and the government’s duty to safeguard the public. The second section reviews the profession and role of the public analyst, in particular the history and development of the Society of Public Analysts. The next and longest section of the monograph is devoted to an interesting examination of food safety, nutrition and food manufacturing issues over the last 100 years. Many of the points raised are illustrated by excerpts from papers written in BFJ and included as Appendices to the monograph. Food irradiation was first raised as a subject in the journal in 1928! Bread and milk as staples in the British diet are looked at in some detail in terms of their ingredients and health properties. Some appendices have been included just for interest and provide brief snapshots of some of the main food concerns of the time, e.g. The Pure Food Society, the food we eat, food poisoning, a world food policy, the packaging of foods, food hygiene. Plus ça change ...

The next month or two behind us and this decade will have passed, to merge in the drab background of the post‐war years, part of the pattern of frustration, failure and fear. The ‘swinging sixties’ some called it, but to an older and perhaps slightly jaundiced eye, the only swinging seemed to be from one crisis to another, like the monkey swinging from bough to bough in his home among the trees; the ‘swingers’ among men also have their heads in the clouds! In the seemingly endless struggle against inflation since the end of the War, it would be futile to fail to see that the country is in retreat all the time. One can almost hear that shaft of MacLeodian wit christening the approaching decade as the ‘sinking seventies’, but it may not be as bad as all that, and certainly not if the innate good sense and political soundness of the British gives them insight into their perilous plight.

Historically, Panama has always been “a place of transit.” While technically the isthmus formed part of Colombia in the nineteenth century, it was linked geopolitically to the United States soon after the California gold rush, beginning in the late 1840s. The first attempt at building a canal ended in failure in 1893 when disease and poor management forced Ferdinand de Lesseps to abandon the project. The U.S. undertaking to build the canal could only begin after Panama declared itself free and broke away from Colombia in 1903, with the support of the United States.

The more recent history of the National Health Service, especially the Hospital Service, has been in the nature of a lumbering from one crisis to another. From the moment of its inception it has proved far more costly than estimated and over‐administered, but in the early years, it had great promise and was efficient at ward level, which continued until more recent times. As costs increased and administration grew and grew, much of it serving no useful purpose, there appeared to be a need for reorganisation. In 1974, a three‐tier structure was introduced by the establishment of new area health authorities, the primary object of which was to facilitate — and cheapen — decision making; to give the district bodies and personnel easier access to “management”. It coincided with reorganisation of Local Government, which included the transfer of all the personal health services and abolition of the office of medical officer of health. At the time and in looking back, there was very little need for this and reviewing the progress and advances made in local government, medical officers of health who had advocated the transfer, mainly for reasons of their own status, would have achieved this and more by remainining in the local government service; the majority of health visitors appear to have reached the same conclusion. They constitute a profession within themselves and in truth do not have all that much in common with day‐to‐day nursing. The basic training and nursing qualification is most essential, however. It has been said that a person is only as good a health visitor as she is a nurse.

This study aims to assess service user characteristics, uptake and outcomes for drug checking services offered to over 250,000 English festival-goers in summer 2018 and to compare findings with earlier years, wider festival-goers and the general population.

A total of 2,672 substances of concern were submitted by the public and tested by chemists in mobile laboratories on 24 show days at seven festivals. Results were embedded in 2,043 individually tailored brief interventions (BI) delivered by health professionals to 4,240 service users. Comparative data were collected through anonymous self-report surveys with 1,291 respondents at five of the same festivals.

Three percent of drug-using festival-goers received BI, 95% of whom had not previously accessed health services regarding their alcohol or other drug use. Drug checking service users were significantly more likely to be younger, male and past month polydrug users with a wider range of drugs consumed in the last month compared with the general festival population. For samples matching purchase intent, nearly half intended to reduce dosage, with younger and female service users significantly more likely to reduce dosage. For substances identified as other than expected, nearly two thirds disposed of them.

Festivals are potential sites to deliver innovative health interventions and to monitor their outcomes, reduce the risk of poisoning and overdose, and facilitate access to follow-up support services.

This study suggests that there is value in event-based services that provide risk reduction communications directly to young adults engaged in higher risk drug use compared with wider event and general populations.

A review of the cases in which samples of food have been taken for analysis under Orders made under the Defence Regulations by the Ministry of Food gives rise to great concern, not only amongst the officers of Food and Drugs Authorities but amongst the trades concerned. A Food and Drugs Authority taking samples for analysis under Section 3 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, is generally required, should a contravention be shown by the Analyst's report, to take action within 28 days. Thus, in normal cases of contravention, justice is done expeditiously once the resolution of the Local Authority has been obtained. In this way, representative selections of food and drugs averaging three per thousand of the population is obtained throughout the year in accordance with the duties imposed on the Authority. Where, however, the Ministry of Food lay down standards under powers contained in the Defence Regulations, action for contravention of those standards cannot be taken by a Food and Drugs Authority but only by the Ministry. Thus, if milk does not reach the requisite standard of 3 per cent milk fat, a Local Authority can immediately take action, as the standard is fixed by the Food and Drugs Act, but, in the case of Channel Island milk for which the standard of 4 per cent is fixed under the Defence Regulations, Local Authorities are precluded from taking any action as this is the prerogative of the Ministry. In practice this means that, in the case of sausages, a Local Authority can prosecute for what they consider to be a deficiency in meat content without the approval of the Ministry of Food, but they cannot quote the standard laid down by them, except perhaps by submitting to the magistrates that this is the commercial standard. The Bench would then have to consider whether they should accept this commercial standard. The position which subsequently often occurs is that, whilst a set standard exists, only the Ministry can quote it. Any Local Authority so doing under Section 3 is likely to have its case dismissed. The Divisional Court case of Thomas Robinson & Sons Ltd. versus Allardice, 1944, illustrates this point. In that case, proceedings had been brought under Section 3 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, for the sale of food not of the nature or not of the substance or not of the quality demanded by the purchaser, in that it did not consist of a particular product defined by an Order made under the Defence Regulations 55. In this case Lawrence J said: “We find reliance, placed upon an alleged breach of the Starch Food Powders (Control) Order, 1941. That has nothing whatever to do with the Food and Drugs Act, and may well have been sumptuary legislation for the conservation of wheat; therefore it is obvious that the justices on their own showing took into consideration something irrelevant.” In consequence, it would appear that the object of the Order must be considered before deciding that it is within the scope of a Food and Drugs Authority's duty to proceed for a breach thereof. It seems that, where a temporary standard has been fixed to meet a crisis or a seasonal situation, the Local Authority has no power to rely upon such a standard when prosecuting under Section 3 of the Food and Drugs Act. Presumably, therefore, failure to comply with the standards laid down in these Orders and Regulations cannot be made the subject of a prosecution by a Food and Drugs Authority under Section 3. It is difficult to justify this complexity of procedure. In a recent case, sausages were found to be deficient in meat, the analysis revealing that 36 per cent meat was present instead of the minimum 50 per cent. A striking feature of this case, however, was the long delay before the case reached the Courts. The Chairman of the Bench stated that he felt the Ministry of Food should have brought the case before the Court sooner, since some five months had elapsed since the offence had been discovered. As the Defence pointed out, if the Ministry of Food attached such importance to the case, why was there some five months delay between the results of the tests on the sausages being received and the case being brought into Court. The time limit under the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, does not apply to procedure under these Regulations.—Recently, a Sampling Officer of a Local Authority purchased some sausages and the Analyst's report revealed a considerable difference between the meat content and the standard laid down under the Regulations. The facts were reported to the Ministry in case they wished to take action. Several weeks later, without any notification to the Food and Drugs Authority, an Enforcement Officer of the Ministry of Food, who had not previously been concerned with the case, called at the shop, informing the butcher of the offence and questioning him as to his action and methods. Both Food and Drugs Sampling Officers and members of the trade will appreciate the exasperation that follows such a visit. After approximately nine weeks from the sample being taken, the tradesman in question was still unaware of the action proposed by the Ministry. Such delay, with the power and resources that the Ministry of Food have at their disposal, is most difficult to justify. It creates a great deal of friction between the trade and the Sampling Officer and brings yet another official into the picture, the necessity for whose presence it is very difficult to understand. Apart from the unnecessary overlapping of the samples that may be taken, the visits of two officers possibly to the same premises for the same purpose does entail a wa§{e of manpower and causes much irritation. Is it not time that Food and Drugs Authorities on whom the onus rests for 99 per cent of sampling of food and drugs were permitted by statute to prosecute for contravention of standards laid down under the Defence Regulations?