Addiction

Scottish drug-related deaths fall for first time in five years

According to a Police Scotland report, there were 116 fewer suspected drug-related deaths in Scotland in 2021, compared with 2020.…

It is time to act on the inequalities in treatment for substance misuse among LGBTQ+ people

Pharmacy staff are well placed to improve the healthcare experience for people in the LGBTQ+ community, a group that is often more susceptible to substance misuse.…

Government advisory body on controlled drugs reviewing safety of liquid morphine

Exclusive: Following the receipt of two regulation 28 notices, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs' technical committee is reviewing information on serious patient safety incidents involving morphine oral solutions.…

Government pledges more than £500m to boost drug treatment services in England

The funding is part of a ten-year plan to address drug misuse and reduce drug-related deaths.…

Pharmacy is the ‘logical place’ to provide naloxone kits, says Community Pharmacy Wales

Responding to the Department of Health and Social Care's consultation on improving naloxone access across the UK, Community Pharmacy Wales emphasised the accessibility of community pharmacy.…

Racial and ethnic disparities in mental health care

An overview of evident racial inequalities in mental health treatments across all ages, as well as discussion on how pharmacists can challenge and/or prevent this imbalance.…

‘Unprecedented’ rise in drug overdoses in England linked with synthetic opioid

Public Health England has issued a National Patient Safety alert warning of a sharp rise in drug overdoses, which have resulted in 16 deaths around the country.…

Scotland logs highest number of drug-related deaths on record in 2020

Data also show that people living in most deprived areas of Scotland were 18 times more likely to die from a drug-related condition than those in the least deprived.…

Naloxone kit supply may have saved almost 1,400 lives in 2020, report finds

There has been a large increase in the uptake of take-home naloxone kits in Scotland, and the emergency antidote for overdoses caused by heroin and other opioids is likely to have saved many lives.…

Home Office to consult this year on adding DNP to list of regulated poisons

Following advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs that the diet pill 2,4-Dinitrophenol is a poison, the UK government will consult on whether to add the compound to the list of regulated poisons.…