Health authorities said yesterday they have learned from mistakes detailed in a highly critical major report into the effectiveness of a drugs awareness campaign which was funded by the taxpayer.
A report commissioned by the the National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD) found that a drugs awareness campaign which ran between 2003 and 2005 was hampered by a number of factors, such as shortages of resources and poor planning.
Details of the independent review come as the Health Service Executive prepares to launch a new awareness campaign over the coming weeks on the myriad dangers of cocaine use.
A spokesman said the new campaign would be generously resourced and was carefully developed using health professionals and a number of focus groups.
A previous campaign, which ran over the course of two years, was judged by an independent review team to have fallen short of its aims and objectives.
This campaign, which highlighted the dangers of drugs such as cannabis and cocaine, was a fundamental element of the National Drugs Strategy 2001-2008.
Its objective was to raise awareness about drugs in the general population through a "measurable change" in the knowledge of targeted groups.
It involved television and radio advertising, posters and brochures, a website and a regional roadshow.
However, a review conducted by academics at NUI Galway's department of health promotion found that it fell short on a number of fronts.
These included a lack of clarity about who the campaign was aimed at, shortages of resources and a lack of time to develop the campaign.
The review identified a series of flaws. The report says that while some viewed the campaign's slogan, "Drugs. There are answers", to be empowering, it was dismissed as meaningless or ridiculous by others and as having no relevance to those concerned with the daily issues around drug misuse.
Overall, the report concluded: "The campaign can be seen to have fallen short of the previously identified criteria for success, that in turn may have reduced the latent effectiveness of the campaign.
"In addition, an ambitious long-term campaign requires dedicated extensive funding and careful time management, both for the individuals involved and the overall process. It appears that both money and time shortages militated against the success of this campaign."
However, the review noted that it would be short-sighted to suggest that drug awareness mass media campaigns should not be resourced in the future.
"Drug issues are complex and ever changing and interventions must reflect this and be founded on evidence based best practice to have any chance of success," the report notes.
"Overall, substantial learning has been gained by participants as a result of their involvement with the development and execution of this mass media campaign."
