Estimated numbers of people prescribed opioid substitution therapy in Scotland
Scottish Public Health Observatory update

About this release

This release by Public Health Scotland (PHS) provides a Scottish Public Health Observatory (ScotPHO) update for the Drugs topic area, where the 'Treatment for Drug Misuse' page contains new data.

Main points

Drugs – treatment for drug misuse

In the 12 month period ending 31 December 2022 (the end of 2022/23 Q3), Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) was prescribed to an estimated minimum of 29,305 people in Scotland. In the 12 month period to the end of the previous financial year quarter (2022/23 Q2) an estimated minimum of 29,405 people were prescribed OST.

Background

These figures estimate the number of individuals prescribed Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) drugs for the treatment of opioid dependence from legacy British National Formulary (BNF) subsection 04.10.03, by their local authority of residence. This includes methadone hydrochloride, buprenorphine, buprenorphine & naloxone and long-acting buprenorphine (including Buvidal© slow-release formulations). Lofexidine hydrochloride and naltrexone hydrochloride (both primarily used for the management of opioid withdrawals) are not included. 

These figures are based on the number of unique Community Health Index (CHI) numbers captured from named community prescriptions for relevant medications at any time within 12 months of each financial year quarter. By showing the estimates based on a rolling 12 month period, which is updated each quarter, it is possible to make comparisons with the annual figures. However, the variable quality of the underlying data means that the figures (and comparisons between years) should be treated with caution. These figures are described as 'estimates' or 'minimum numbers' due to issues associated with CHI capture for OST prescriptions which mean that it is challenging to provide a robust count of the number of people prescribed these medications. Although in some areas CHI capture remains below the agreed threshold of reliability for individual-level analysis (usually only reported when CHI completeness is above 85-90%), due to the public interest in OST prescribing, these statistics are published as management information.

The Scottish Public Health Observatory collaboration is led by PHS and includes the Glasgow Centre for Population Health, National Records of Scotland, the Medical Research Council/Chief Scientist Office Social and Public Health Sciences Unit and the Scottish Learning Disabilities Observatory.

The aim of the collaboration is to make public health information more accessible, to promote the reduction in inequalities and to inform health improvement in Scotland.

Further information

Data from this publication are available from the publication page of the ScotPHO website.

The next ScotPHO quarterly update will be released in August 2023.

The next release of these statistics will be on 29 August 2023.