The National Record of Scotland Drug-Related Deaths Annual Report was published yesterday.
The key points highlighted in this report are as follows:
- In 2023, there were 1,172 drug deaths registered in Scotland, an increase of 12% (121 deaths) compared with 2022.
- Whilst drug deaths in Scotland have generally been increasing over the last two decades, this is the second lowest number in the last six years
- Drug deaths are still much more common than they were in 2000. After adjusting for age, the rate of drug deaths were 4.2 times as high in 2023 than 2000.
- In 2023, males were twice as likely to have a drug death as females. Most of the increase in the past year was due to male deaths.
- Since 2000, the average age of drug deaths has increased from 32 to 45.
- People in the most deprived areas of Scotland are more than 15 times as likely to die from drugs compared to people in the least deprived areas. The association of deprivation with drug deaths is much greater than with other causes of death.
- After adjusting for age, Glasgow City and Dundee City had the highest rates of drug deaths while East Renfrewshire and East Dunbartonshire had the lowest.
- The most common type of drugs implicated in drug deaths in 2023 were opiates/opioids which were implicated in 80% of all deaths.
- The majority (88%) of drug deaths were classified as accidental poisonings, with only 7% classed as intentional self-poisonings.
Please see below for a breakdown for Scotland, NHS Lanarkshire and North and South Lanarkshire Council areas:
There are a number of services available across North Lanarkshire to support people in relation to their own or someone else substance use, these can be accessed via the access support tab on this website.
