NHS recovery plan: progress report 2023

National Mission to tackle drug-related deaths

Whilst drug-related deaths remain a real challenge in Scotland, 2022 saw a 21% reduction on 2021. The change between 2021 and 2022 is the largest year on year decrease on record, and the lowest figure since 2017. However, suspected drug deaths for the first half of 2023 increased slightly, and we remain absolutely committed to r educing drug deaths. We are also supporting Glasgow HSCP to establish the UK’s first safer drug consumption facility.

Our National Mission on Drugs

A key plank of our national mission on drugs is the implementation of new Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Standards for people who use drugs to support the consistent delivery of safe, accessible, high-quality drug treatment in Scotland. Public Health Scotland (PHS) published a report in June 2023 showing that, of the 10 MAT Standards, most local areas had fully implemented Standards 1 to 5 by April 2023 and that most areas had partially implemented Standards 6- 10. The report showed significant progress had been made but more improvement is required in some local areas

Our NHS Recovery Plan committed to ensure there are sufficient outreach facilities, programmes and residential rehabilitation in place for people who use drugs, and referrals to residential rehabilitation continue to increase and the aim to be providing 1000 publicly-funded placements per year in expanded capacity by the end of the Parliament remains on-track. Outreach initiatives are in place in most local areas now as part of MAT standard 3 and non-fatal overdose pathways continue to grow, often delivered through the Scottish Ambulance Service.

The past year has seen key actions undertaken as part of our “National Mission on drugs”, including:

• Continued to expand Residential Rehab.
• Provided £15m a year funding to community and grass-roots organisations that supported over 300 projects across Scotland, including 48 projects in the most recent funding round.
• Improving person-centred support for people who present with co-occurring mental health and substance use issues.
• Working to support Glasgow HSCP to establish the UK’s first Safer Drug Consumption Facility following the Lord Advocate’s position – although this would be made far easier if the UK Government would use its powers to support this initiative.
• Established the National Collaborative, who are developing a Charter of Rights for people who use drugs to increase accountability, monitoring, and challenge, in the context of the forthcoming Human Rights Bill.
• Published our response to the Drug Death Taskforce Report, detailing over 80 actions, supported by significant new spending commitments of over £68m for the remainder of this parliament.