Welcome!
Pill Testing Australia (previously STA-SAFE) conduct laboratory grade, front of house pill testing integrated with health professional consultations.
Having conducted Australia’s first successful pill testing at Groovin the Moo in 2018 we are working hard to roll out this proven, important harm reduction strategy at events and eventually in cities around Australia. The Groovin the Moo 2019 pill testing service was a resounding success and led to the establishment of Australia’s first ever fixed pill testing service – CanTEST – which was launched in July 2022, and following a 6 month pilot, 675 discussions, 85 health interventions and 614 substance tests, funding has been extended into 2023.
If you thought testing pills was just a recent idea, think again. Drug checking services have been developed over the last 25 years in over 30 countries and are one of the best proven strategies for reducing drug-related harm.
The evidence for pill testing shows us that:
- it reduces the amount of drugs consumed by individuals
- it reduces the variety of drugs consumed in a session, both of which are risk factors for overdose & death
We are dedicated to seeing pill testing services rolled out as part of a nationwide system.
What we do is relatively simple.
People considering using a pill or other drug can see us to have them tested to discover what it is they may really be taking.
As part of this process we will provide a range of information to help people make an informed decision while understanding the risks and what to do in the event of any adverse outcomes.
This is an opportunity for an early intervention, the provision of non-discriminatory health information, and access referral pathways to a range of health and community services.
We never advise people it is safe to take drugs
We never promote the consumption of drugs
We are a non-discriminatory health service.
Enjoy looking around our website and learning about the different services we provide.
Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Pill Testing Explained animation
National Harm Reduction Forum
Forum overview Currently in Australia, there is no regular mechanism to unite and bring those working in and around harm reduction and related sectors together at the national level. The National Harm Reduction Forum 2024 is a free, online event for important...
Drug checkers get a funding boost
The CanTEST Health and Drug Checking Service will continue to be funded until June 2027, as the ACT government extends its funding by $1.8 million.
Pill-testing plan to stop ‘horror’ of teenagers overdosing: Premier
Dr David Caldicott, an emergency department consultant and clinical lead with Pill Testing Australia, said festival-goers often changed their behaviour once they had their drugs tested. Caldicott said the Victorian drug-checking proposal was timely because nitazenes –...
Pill testing is said to slash the number of overdoses
Queensland, Australia, just committed to government-funded testing of illegal drugs. The harm reduction strategy is popular in Western Europe, where lab technicians have set up a tent at music festivals or clubs and run basic tests on party drugs. As The World’s Sarah...
Illegal ketamine use is at a record high, and dangerous chemical cousins are entering the market
The illegal use of ketamine soared in 2023 in Australia. But as ketamine rises in popularity, organised crime groups are importing dangerous chemical copies of the drug. The number of these copies on the market is “an unknown, unknown”.
Canberra pill testing service CanTEST issues red alert after finding synthetic opioid
It's the first time CanTEST has issued such a notice this year, and only the fourth time since operations began in Civic in mid-2022. "A red alert is something that we issue very rarely," explained Dr Caldicott. "It is a reflection of how serious we think the impact...
Latest newsletters
PTA will only deliver front of house testing and is a signatory to the Trans-Tasman Charter which lays out the principles under which any pill testing should operate.
