Patients with link to drugs at lowest in decade

The number of patients being admitted to Scotland’s hospitals because of drugs has fallen to the lowest level in almost a decade, according to the latest figures.

New figures for 202223 showed that 7,575 patients spent time in hospital because of drugs.

With some patients needing treatment more than once, there were a total of 9,663 drug-related hospital stays over the course of the year, Public Health Scotland’s data showed.

Meanwhile, 3,657 patients in hospital for drugs in 2022-23 were classed as new patients – meaning they had not had a drug-related hospital stay in the past 10 years.

With 48% of patients in this category, it was the second year in a row that less than half of those having a drugrelated hospital stay were new patients.

The figures also showed that less than two-thirds (64%) of the patients admitted in 2022-23 were aged less than 45 years – with this down from a peak of having 95% of patients in this age group in 1999-2000.

Overall, looking at the number of drugrelated hospital stays, patients, and new patients, Public Health Scotland said the “rates observed in 2022-23 were the lowest since 2014-15”. Meanwhile, the stay rate – of 182 drug-related hospital stays per 100,000 people – had fallen for the third consecutive year, with this down from a peak of 283 per 100,000 of the population in 2019-20.

Just under half (48%) of those who spent time in hospital because of drugs came from Scotland’s most deprived communities.

Public Health Scotland said people in these areas “generally accounted for just over half ” of all drug-related hospital stays.