Responding to volatile substance use or harm

• What information do we currently know about the incident? (i.e. timing, location, substance used, people involved). 
• What information do we still need to find out? (e.g. from where did they access the products? What is driving people to use volatile substances in this community?) 
• What are the roles and responsibilities defined and understood by the group? I.e., who will be responsible for doing what? 
• How can we get on top of ‘word of mouth’ about the incident, and what do we need to communicate to mitigate further harm? (Consider: what are the key messages/information we want to get out to the community, and how can this be achieved?) 
• What additional support can be provided to people affected? 
• How will this group communicate and provide updates? 
• How will we manage communications about the incident (i.e. media, police, concerned community members)? See our communications section here.

• Discuss with your response group who else should be involved and/or kept updated. People in your response group may have ideas about other local services and organisations who should be informed or involved. This list of contacts will be separate from your core response group, but you can offer opportunities for them to feedback into the response and offer their expertise through other channels.   
• Consider sharing what you know about the incident with national organisations (i.e. NZ Drug Foundation, Te Whatu Ora, first responders). This information can help these organisations monitor the issue/trends at a national level and help ensure any messaging or large-scale response is consistent with the local response. National organisations could also provide additional support to the local response.
  
  In the instance that you need to respond to media enquiries, national organisations might be able to provide guidance or direct comment. Ensure that the organisations you approach are fully briefed, and your response group is OK for the organisation to provide comment on behalf of the group.  
• Consider working with local retailers who stock inhalable products. Retailers may be able to help reduce access by moving or more closely monitoring products. It is important to not inadvertently identify products as inhalable (i.e. by not displaying “no huffing these products” signs or similar), as young people may not already be aware of them.  

• In addition to communicating your response, key information could cover important messaging around volatile substances (including Sudden Sniffing Death), harm reduction information, what to do in an overdose, and links to support/resources. Information should be relevant to the community and effective to reduce further harm. 
• Local responses will need to be equipped with the above information and appropriate responses to young people who use volatile substances. Information and responses should be health-based (i.e., focusing on providing support and information to reduce harm), mana-enhancing, and written in a clear and accessible way.  
• You can order/download some volatile substances resources for your community here.

Ensure people in the local response group are on the same page about what messages will be communicated, and who will be responsible for sharing information. Some questions you may like to consider as a group are: 

• Will someone in the local response group act as media spokesperson, and/or will you approach a national organisation for support with media queries? 
• How will you distribute key resources and information to people in your community? 
• Who can people in your community approach if they have concerns or questions? How can this information be made available? 

Legally, the privacy of the young people involved must be protected. 

Avoid communications or descriptions that may identify or expose the young people to negative repercussions in the community. An example could be to avoid sharing any videos that depict the young people using the substance, including on social media; and not publicly naming the school the young person/people goes to in external communications.

While responders will need key information about the context of use/harm, responses should also avoid stigmatising the young people involved. Consider using person-centred language when talking about the incident and avoiding language that may perpetuate negative stereotypes. Te Pou has a helpful guide around language to use when discussing substance use.

People in your community may speculate about the incident on community Facebook groups. Your group or members of your group may want to respond to some of this speculation in order to protect the privacy of the people involved and to dispel any rumours. 

• Ask admins of community Facebook groups to take down any posts that identify the person who was harmed 
• Remind people not to speculate on or identify the specific substance used, as this can cause inadvertent harm by encouraging others to try them 
• Reassure community members that your group is working on responding to this incident 
• If you encounter any speculation, responding with a simple “There is a lot we still don’t know about this case, and it’s best not to speculate.” can help 
• Note that journalists may post in community social media groups to get comment from locals - keep an eye out for these posts and let them know that your group (or the organisation you are working with) has the facts and can help.

To be ready to respond to media queries, you’ll need to have decided: 

• What information you’re okay with being publicly communicated, if any 
• Your key messages 
• If your group will respond to media queries directly, or if a national organisation will respond to these on your behalf 
• Who will act as your spokesperson/s when speaking to the media. 

If you receive a media query, get the following information from the journalist before responding to help you prepare: 

• The name and contact details of the journalist and the outlet they work for 
• The medium (TV, radio, print/online) 
• Whether they are requesting a live or pre-recorded interview - or if they will accept written comment 
• How long the interview is likely to be 
• What information they already have 
• Who else they are interviewing and what the angle of the story is 
• What questions they want you to answer 
• Their deadline. 

You may also want to proactively share our media guidelines for responsible reporting on volatile substance harm.  

It’s up to you whether you accept or decline an interview request from a journalist. Your group may decide that there isn’t any information you want to share.  

Each medium has its own unique requirements that will affect how you prepare. 

TV / Video 

• Interviews on camera can be the most daunting for people who aren’t experienced with the media. They require you to be confident and to know your key messages well as you can’t refer to any notes or information on the spot. 
• Pre-recorded TV interviews (e.g. for the 6pm news) are usually conducted by a journalist and camera operator. They will usually make you feel as comfortable as possible and give you instructions on where to look when answering questions. If you stumble over your words or don’t get an answer quite right, you can always ask if you can do it again. They may also ask to film you for ‘cutaways’ (shots where you aren’t giving answers) that they can use to edit the story together - they may ask you to walk and talk to the journalist or read a document relevant to the story. You don’t have to agree to anything that makes you feel uncomfortable. Avoid agreeing to any cutaways that contain or reference specific volatile substance products. 
• Live TV interviews (e.g. on Breakfast) are more rare but will usually involve being interviewed remotely by a host either via a camera and earpiece or via zoom. These are more difficult as you usually need to look directly at the camera and can’t see the person asking the questions. You also won’t be able to redo any answers as the interview will be broadcast live.  

Radio 

• Radio interviews (usually over the phone) can be easier than TV as they can allow you to refer to notes or bullet points. Still, it’s important that you have a good grasp of your key messages and don’t sound like you’re simply reading.  
• Pre-recorded radio interviews (e.g. for news bulletins) are usually conducted over the phone with a journalist. If you stumble over your words or don’t get an answer quite right, you can always ask if you can do it again. 
• Live radio interviews (e.g. for live news or talk show) are conducted by the radio show host live on air. It’s important to know beforehand how long the interview will be so you can get a sense of how wide-ranging the questions are likely to be. You also won’t be able to redo any answers as the interview will be broadcast live.   

Print / Online 

• Requests from print and online outlets (like newspapers or sites like stuff.co.nz) can be the easiest to deal with for people who aren’t experienced with the media.  
• The safest approach can be to ask if you can give written comment. This allows you to ask the journalist to send you a list of questions via email that you can then take time to carefully answer in writing. Write your answers as if you are saying them and let the journalist know who they should be attributed to.   
• Alternatively, an interview for print / online outlets is much like a pre-recorded radio interview - ordinarily it will be conducted over the phone, and you can ask to redo answers if you feel you don’t get an answer quite right.