Background

Scotland has been called, “Europe’s drugs deaths capital”. In 2020 in Scotland, drug-related deaths (DRD) were at an all-time high. There were 1,339 DRD, a rate 3.5 times higher than the UK average and the highest in Europe. Of all DRD in 2020, opioids were implicated in 89% of deaths.    In 2021, in response to the DRD crisis, the Scottish Government funded a pilot to test the carriage and administration of intranasal Naloxone by officers in Police Scotland.

Methodology

Between March and December 2021, the pilot was evaluated, employing a mixed methodology. In semi-structured interviews we explored community stakeholders’ (CS) views about the acceptability of the initiative, and potential barriers and facilitators to police uptake of naloxone. Interviews were transcribed, anonymized and analyzed, taking a thematic approach.

Results

Nineteen CS were recruited to take part in one-on-one interviews. This included people with ‘lived or living experience of opioid use’ (LEOU) (n=9, family members of people with LEOU (n=4) and third sector staff who supported people with LEOU (n=10). CS were supportive of police carriage of naloxone, believing that it fitted with police officer’s duty to protect life. They saw ‘intranasal’ naloxone as a facilitator due to its ease of use. While they shared some positive accounts of police, they identified that some officers held stigmatising attitudes towards people who used drugs. They also thought that recipients of naloxone may respond aggressively to officers.

Conclusion

CS were supportive of the initiative, recommending that police officers should receive additional training around problem drug use and the multiple influencing factors (e.g. trauma). Scotland is the only country globally where every officer is trained and equipped at the point of recruitment.   As of October 2025, there have been over 500 incidents where police officers administered Naloxone to save a person experiencing an overdose.