Drug and alcohol misuse are major problems in Scotland but resources to address them are not always used effectively. In this study, published information on services was analysed and national documents were reviewed, expenditure data from all NHS boards and councils were collected and analysed and activity data from all police forces in Scotland were collected to give an indication of expenditure.
Focus groups were carried out with people who have problems with drugs and alcohol, families directly affected by drug and alcohol misuse, local drug and alcohol partnership support staff and voluntary and private sector service providers, and staff were interviewed and documents from agencies commissioning or providing drug and alcohol services were reviewed.
This report is in four main parts: the scale of drug and alcohol misuse, direct expenditure on drug and alcohol services, effectiveness of drug and alcohol services, and drug and alcohol partnerships.