Scotland's drug deaths: How support charities coped with pandemic

Justina Murray, chief executive at the Scottish Families Against Alcohol and Drugs (SFAD), said we should be aiming for a “zero drug-related deaths”.  

“We know that all these deaths are preventable, so why don't we have a zero target,” she questioned.  

SFAD saw a 66 per cent increase in calls to its helpline during the pandemic and that demand “hasn’t tailed off” more than two-years on from its onset. 

Justina Murray

Ms Murray added: “Every month, we are averaging about 100 more calls to the helpline than we were pre-pandemic so that demand has been sustained, which suggests that all of that harm that was happening during the pandemic hasn't been reversed. 

“Whereas previously there's lots of drug use in Scotland, which wouldn't necessarily harm families, but it moved more into that area of harm during the pandemic, and it's not really moved back out of that area.” 

READ MORE: 

• 'Unacceptable': Scotland's drug death crisis flatlines with 1,330 annual fatalities in 2021
• In charts: What the latest figures reveal about Scotland's drug deaths crisis

During that time, many frontline services were also affected by lower staff levels amid “difficult and challenging times”, another charity boss warned.  

Head of alcohol and other drugs at Turning Point Scotland, Patricia Tracey, said the reduction in face-to-face services was “difficult” for drug users.  

“Isolation and loneliness are always an issue, particularly for this group,” she added. “A lot of people die alone as well.” 

Both of these essential organisations had to adapt for much of both 2020 and the following year. 

Patricia Tracey

Many of Turning Point Scotland’s services were able to stay open with the addition of protective measures such as the use of PPE, including the Glasgow Alcohol and Drug Crisis service, but they did need to adapt to “delivering to people’s bedrooms”. 

Zoom, FaceTime and WhatsApp naturally became a big part of their services at the start of the pandemic or even a socially distant walk for those who really needed face to face contact. 

But they were also able to launch a new Overdose Response Team in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area – a rapid and individual-based response to near-fatal overdoses. 

While it was “really, really difficult” to begin the service just weeks into the first lockdown, Ms Tracey said it was “really greatly received”.  

She said: “You've had that trauma in your life, that near fatal overdose – the fact that somebody cared enough to come to your door was actually very greatly received. 

“The evidence is saying that that can save lives and going to the individual rather than giving them an appointment is coming off very strongly.” 

An introduction of an online postal needle exchange will keep the key service accessible for rural areas even after the pandemic, she added.  

Meanwhile, SFAD brought out a new intensive family support service, Holding On, and was able to deliver naloxone for the first time ever, known as the overdose reversal drug, to those they work with.  

During the pandemic, a decision by the Lord Advocate allowed other service to distribute the life-saving pharmaceutical. SFAD delivered in excess of 6500 kits since that decision was made – as it became possible to get Naloxone to families “directly” and “discretely”. 

However, their work can still be restricted by external factors, crucially policy.  

Ms Murray said SFAD hear “what I can only describe as horror stories every day” from family members about how their loved ones are “being treated by services” 

“With drug treatment services, it's very unclear what the plan is, and families are routinely excluded from that.”  

And there is not a single local authority that “can rest on their laurels” when it comes to improving support for drug users.  

“We pretty much hear horror stories from every corner of Scotland,” she added. 

Users also don’t have equal access to treatment in different councils, Ms Tracey of Turning Point Scotland warned.  

“We have a specific alcohol and drug crisis service, but these are expensive. Glasgow is a big city so we can afford to run that,” she said.  

She called for “changes in laws, legislations, systems, processes” to allow more cooperation in both procurement and commissioning of services across different areas of Scotland.  

Urging for versions of their overdose response team, and reviews of consumption rooms and the Misuse of Drugs Act, Ms Tracey emphasised that there “is no one thing that is going to fix” Scotland’s drug-related deaths crisis.  

Ms Murray urged for more to be done sooner rather than later. “It feels a little bit after the fact to then express our sorrow when their loved one has died, when actually, as a nation, we could be doing an awful lot more before that point,” she said.  

“It is really important to remember that those same families who we express our sorrow for when there is a death have often been shouting out for years, about everything that they need to keep their loved one safe and alive.” 

If you are looking for help, you can find your nearest charity offering support for drug users here.

If you are concerned about someone else's alcohol or drug use, contact the Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs at 08080 10 10 11 or email helpline@sfad.org.uk.