Stabilisation, detoxification and other crisis support in Scotland: Service mapping and capacity survey 2022/23

2. Methodology

A scoping survey was developed in consultation with the Stabilisation and Crisis Care Working Group (SCCWG) the Residential Rehabilitation Development Working Group (RRDWG) to identify potential providers of services (including detoxification and stabilisation) for people who use alcohol and/or drugs in Scotland. Respondent were asked to provide the name, location and where possible contact details for services they were aware of, and to forward the survey to anyone who may have relevant information. Fieldwork took place in June 2023 and the survey was distributed by email to:

• all residential rehabilitation providers,
• frontline services across Scotland that report via the Drug and Alcohol Information System (DAISy),
• people with lived experience via the Scottish Recovery Consortium (SRC) and the Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs (SFAD),
• General Practitioner leads,
• the Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems, and
• members of the Residential Rehabilitation Development Working Group (RRDWG).

Subsequent desk research was conducted to verify and supplement the results of the scoping survey. The final list of services was shared with the SCCWG and the RRDWG as a further means to quality assure the results.

A mapping and capacity survey of detoxification, stabilisation and other crisis support providers was developed in consultation with key stakeholders. This was composed of 35 primarily closed-ended questions (see Appendix A), aimed at obtaining information on aspects such as current capacity, types of treatment offered, funding and outcomes. The survey was distributed by email to:

• the list of providers identified as part of the scoping exercise,
• all residential rehabilitation providers in Scotland,
• frontline services that report via the Drug and Alcohol Information System (DAISy),
• Scottish health board leads,
• and members of the Residential Rehabilitation Development Working Group (RRDWG) and the Stabilisation Working Group (SWG), asking them to forward it on to their contacts.

A separate survey, tailored to prison settings, was issued by email to all healthcare managers of the 15 Scottish prisons (see Appendix B). The survey was composed of 12 questions and was also aimed at obtaining information on current capacity, types of treatment offered and outcomes.

Data collection took place between the 27^th of October and the 24^th of November 2023. The results of the analysis are presented in this report.