“More needs to be done to reach the most vulnerable” - an interview with David Liddell, head of the Scottish Drugs Forum

Drugreporter: How many people have died of drug overdose in Scotland?

Dave Liddell: 706 people died of an overdose in 2015 – an alarmingly high figure, which is the highest on record. It is linked to the scale of the drug problem in Scotland – 61,500 users, among a population of five million, and an aging population of problematic drug users.

The average age was 42 years, 69% male, with the majority of those who died coming from the poorest communities in Scotland. The drugs used were heroin, other opioids and benzodiazepines. Alcohol was also a drug implicated in over 100 of the deaths.

Drugreporter: What about the prevalence of infectious diseases among injecting drug users? Is that increasing too?

Dave Liddell: There have been reported increases in HIV among injectors recently, with a total of 75 cases in Glasgow. This outbreak is ongoing and very few are so far receiving HIV treatment.

Drugreporter: In your view, what factors are behind the negative trends?

Dave Liddell: The trend in rising drug deaths has several causes. Some older drug users have generally poor physical health and are therefore more likely to die as a result of overdose. But in a wider picture, we have a problem keeping people in treatment services, and we have a problem stopping people needing to use street drugs as well as their medication. There may be several reasons for this, but a significant issue is under-prescribing of OST – people are not getting large enough doses of their medication. Also, there is an issue about the transition of people from prisons and hospitals into the community-based treatment services.

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