SuperMIX is the largest and longest-running active cohort study of people who inject drugs in Australia, with over 1500 participants.
Since 2008, we have surveyed people who inject drugs in the Melbourne and the Greater Geelong region to:
- understand rates of mortality, poor mental health, overdose, bloodborne virus (BBV) infections, injecting-related injuries and diseases (IRIDs), and chronic diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- determine the effectiveness of existing and new health programs like drug treatment, take-home naloxone (THN) and supervised injecting facilities (SIFs). The goal is to improve health and help people stop usings drugs in the long-term
- evaluate the impacts of structural factors (like homelessness and imprisonment) on health outcomes.
A cohort study is a research method where scientists follow a group of people over time to see how certain things, like habits or exposures, affect their health.
SuperMIX provides important information on how injecting drug use evolves over time. People in the study complete follow-up interviews once a year. They also consent to linking their past and future data to administrative health and social datasets.
SuperMIX is part of a broader study called MIXMAX. This combines SuperMIX with VMAX—a study collecting data on methamphetamine use over time—to become the largest active cohort study of people who use drugs in Australia.
Our impact
SuperMIX has informed state government alcohol and other drug treatment services, including reviews of the Medically Supervised Injecting Room Trial. The project has also contributed to systematic reviews.
About the study
The SuperMIX study runs from a mobile van which visits different health services around Melbourne. Participants usually complete an interview in person with a researcher and have blood taken to test for blood borne viruses. Between 2020 and 2022, researchers switched to phone interviews due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In August 2022:
- 5,530 surveys were completed
- 1,328 participants completed a baseline interview
- 28 was the average age of participants at baseline interview
- participants were involved in the study for 8.6 years on average
- the average number of follow up surveys was 4.2.
Participant location
Participants are located all around Victoria. The following chart provides a breakdown of participant locations as at August 2022.
The pie chart shows the percentage of study participants located in different areas of Victoria. Footscray has the highest percentage (38%), while Geelong has the lowest (1%). Other regions are represented as follows: North Richmond (19%), Frankston (16%), Central Business District (10%), Inner north (7%), St Kilda (6%), and Dandenong (5%).
Published research
Key publications
Van Den Boom W, Quiroga MDM, O'Keefe D, Kumar D, Hill PL, Scott N, Agius PA, Higgs P, Kerr T, Maher L, Hickman M, Stoové M, Dietze P. Int J Epidemiol. 2022 Jun 13;51(3):e123-e130.
Hill PL, Stoové M, Agius PA, Maher L, Hickman M, Crawford S, Dietze P. Addiction. 2022 Dec;117(12):3091-3098.
van Santen DK, Lodi S, Dietze P, van den Boom W, Hayashi K, Dong H, Cui Z, Maher L, Hickman M, Boyd A, Prins M. Addiction. 2023 Jun;118(6):1116-1126.
Other publications
VIEW ALL RESEARCHArtenie A, Stone J, Fraser H, Stewart D, Arum C, Lim AG, McNaughton AL, Trickey A, Ward Z, Abramovitz D, Alary M, Astemborski J, Bruneau J, Clipman SJ, Coffin CS, Croxford S, DeBeck K, Emanuel E, Hayashi K, Hermez JG, Low-Beer D, Luhmann N, Macphail G, Maher L, Palmateer NE, Patel EU, Sacks-Davis R, Van Den Boom W, van Santen DK, Walker JG, Hickman M, Vickerman P; HIV and HCV Incidence Review Collaborative Group (including Dietze P and Hellard M)
- The Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology
- 01 Jun 2023
van Santen DK, Lodi S, Dietze P, van den Boom W, Hayashi K, Dong H, Cui Z, Maher L, Hickman M, Boyd A, Prins M
- Addiction
- 29 Jan 2023
Schroeder SE, Wilkinson AL, O'Keefe D, Bourne A, Doyle JS, Hellard M, Dietze P, Pedrana A
- Harm reduction journal
- 23 Jan 2023
Lafferty L, Schroeder S, Marshall AD, Drysdale K, Higgs P, Stoové M, Baldry E, Dietze P, Treloar C
- The International journal on drug policy
- 14 Dec 2022
Hill PL, Stoové M, Agius PA, Maher L, Hickman M, Crawford S, Dietze P
- Addiction (Abingdon, England)
- 24 Jun 2022
Van Den Boom W, Quiroga MDM, O'Keefe D, Kumar D, Hill PL, Scott N, Agius PA, Higgs P, Kerr T, Maher L, Hickman M, Stoové M, Dietze P
- International journal of epidemiology
- 14 Jun 2022
Schroeder SE, Drysdale K, Lafferty L, Baldry E, Marshall AD, Higgs P, Dietze P, Stoove M, Treloar C
- The International journal on drug policy
- 07 Jan 2022
Oni HT, Drake JA, Dietze P, Higgs P, Islam MM
- Women and birth : journal of the Australian College of Midwives
- 27 Dec 2021
Abdelsalam S, Van Den Boom W, Higgs P, Dietze P, Erbas B
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 10 Oct 2021
Geddes L, Iversen J, Wand H, Esmaeili A, Tsui J, Hellard M, Dore G, Grebely J, Dietze P, Bruneau J, Prins M, Morris MD, Shoukry NH, Lloyd AR, Kim AY, Lauer G, Cox AL, Page K, Maher L, International Collaboration of Incident HIV and HCV in Injecting Cohorts (InC3) Collaborative
- Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
- 06 Jan 2021
Van Den Boom W, Del Mar Quiroga M, Fetene DM, Agius PA, Higgs PG, Maher L, Hickman M, Stoové MA, Dietze PM
- American journal of preventive medicine
- 17 May 2021
Fetene DM, Higgs P, Nielsen S, Djordjevic F, Dietze P
- The Medical journal of Australia
- 18 Feb 2021
Palmer A, Higgs P, Scott N, Agius P, Maher L, Dietze P
- Addiction (Abingdon, England)
- 27 Aug 2020
Quinn B, Pearson R, Cutts J, Seed C, Scott N, Hoad V, Dietze P, Wilson D, Maher L, Thompson A, Farrell M, Harrod M, Caris S, Pink J, Kotsiou G, Hellard M
- Vox sanguinis
- 05 Feb 2020
O'Keefe D, Scott N, Aitken C, Dietze P
- Journal of public health (Oxford, England)
- 06 Nov 2019
Esmaeili A, Mirzazadeh A, Morris MD, Hajarizadeh B, Sacks HS, Maher L, Grebely J, Kim AY, Lauer G, Cox AL, Hellard M, Dietze P, Bruneau J, Shoukry NH, Dore GJ, Lloyd AR, Prins M, Page K, InC3 Collaborative
- Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
- 30 Sep 2019
O'Keefe D, Wilkinson A, Aitken C, Dietze P
- PloS one
- 14 Dec 2018
Di Rico R, Nambiar D, Stoové M, Dietze P
- BMC health services research
- 05 Dec 2018
Wright C, Cogger S, Hsieh K, Goutzamanis S, Hellard M, Higgs P
- Infection, disease & health
- 28 Nov 2018
Stone J, Fraser H, Lim AG, Walker JG, Ward Z, MacGregor L, Trickey A, Abbott S, Strathdee SA, Abramovitz D, Maher L, Iversen J, Bruneau J, Zang G, Garfein RS, Yen YF, Azim T, Mehta SH, Milloy MJ, Hellard ME, Sacks-Davis R, Dietze PM, Aitken C, Aladashvili M, Tsertsvadze T, Mravčík V, Alary M, Roy E, Smyrnov P, Sazonova Y, Young AM, Havens JR, Hope VD, Desai M, Heinsbroek E, Hutchinson SJ, Palmateer NE, McAuley A, Platt L, Martin NK, Altice FL, Hickman M, Vickerman P
- The Lancet. Infectious diseases
- 29 Oct 2018
O'Keefe D, Aitken C, Scott N, Dietze P
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 22 Aug 2018
Daniel O, Campbell A, Paul D
- The International journal on drug policy
- 02 Aug 2018
Goutzamanis S, Doyle JS, Thompson A, Dietze P, Hellard M, Higgs P, TAP study group
- BMC infectious diseases
- 02 Apr 2018
Nambiar D, Spelman T, Stoové M, Dietze P
- Substance use & misuse
- 16 Oct 2017
O'Keefe D, Bowring A, Aitken C, Dietze P
- Substance use & misuse
- 29 Sep 2017
Nambiar D, Stoové M, Hickman M, Dietze P
- BMJ open
- 18 Aug 2017
Nambiar D, Stoové M, Dietze P
- The International journal on drug policy
- 13 May 2017
Aitken CK, Agius PA, Higgs PG, Stoové MA, Bowden DS, Dietze PM
- Epidemiology and infection
- 08 Dec 2016
Scott N, Carrotte ER, Higgs P, Cogger S, Stoové MA, Aitken CK, Dietze PM
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 11 Sep 2016
Nambiar D, Agius PA, Stoové M, Hickman M, Dietze P
- Harm reduction journal
- 09 Dec 2015
O'Keefe D, Horyniak D, Dietze P
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 23 Nov 2015
Horyniak D, Agius PA, Degenhardt L, Reddel S, Higgs P, Aitken C, Stoové M, Dietze P
- Substance use & misuse
- 17 Nov 2015
Horyniak D, Higgs P, Cogger S, Dietze P, Bofu T, Seid G
- Journal of ethnicity in substance abuse
- 15 Jul 2015
Nambiar D, Agius PA, Stoové M, Hickman M, Dietze P
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 30 Jun 2015
Scott N, Caulkins JP, Ritter A, Quinn C, Dietze P
- Addiction (Abingdon, England)
- 23 Oct 2014
Horyniak D, Stoové M, Degenhardt L, Aitken C, Kerr T, Dietze P
- The International journal on drug policy
- 17 Sep 2014
Nambiar D, Stoové M, Dietze P
- BMC health services research
- 16 Jul 2014
Bond B, Caulkins JP, Scott N, Kilmer B, Dietze P
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 23 Jun 2014
Horyniak D, Higgs P, Jenkinson R, Degenhardt L, Stoové M, Kerr T, Hickman M, Aitken C, Dietze P
- Harm reduction journal
- 21 Jun 2013
O'Keefe D, Aitken C, Higgs P, Dietze P
- Drug and alcohol review
- 01 Nov 2012
Dietze P, Jenkinson R, Aitken C, Stoové M, Jolley D, Hickman M, Kerr T
- Drug and alcohol dependence
- 16 Sep 2012
More information
For more information, please email supermix@burnet.edu.au or phone 1800 650 299.
Funding partners
Colonial Foundation Trust
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Grant IDs: 545891, 1126090, 2023690.
Partners and collaborators
Monash Rural Health (Bernadette Ward)
British Columbia Centre on Substance Use (Thomas Kerr)
Curtin University (Jocelyn Jones, Samantha Colledge-Frisby, Michael Curtis)
Deakin University (Paul Agius)
University of Bristol (Matthew Hickman)
Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine (James Trauer)
UNSW Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales (Lisa Maher)
Alfred Health (Andrew Stewardson)
Harm Reduction Victoria (Sione Crawford)
Royal Melbourne Hospital (Nicholas Clark)
Burnet project team
Student projects
We're looking for postgraduate students to join related research projects in 2025. Click on a project for more information.
