'The future often arrives from the margins.' Václav Havel Throughout history, mutual aid societies have emerged to fill gaps left by formal institutions. From the Friendly Societies of the 19th century that pioneered worker welfare before the National Insurance Act of 1911, to the Temperance movements that established peer support for alcohol abstinence decades before … Continue reading When Grassroots Runs Ahead: What Cocaine Anonymous (CA) in Scotland Tells Us About Drug Policy
Author: Dr David McCartney
Addiction Medicine Specialist
Rehab in Scotland – what’s going on?
. Scotland, for all its beauty and positives, has an unwelcome first ranking in Europe in the domain of drug deaths. In 2021, the Scottish Government announced the National Mission as a response. A significant financial resource was realised to do this, spread over a variety of interventions. One of these was residential rehabilitation – … Continue reading Rehab in Scotland – what’s going on?
2023’s #2 Post: Hot topics in addiction and recovery
What were the hot topics, burning themes and searing subjects in addiction recovery in 2022? I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the talking points on Recovery Review in 2022. Although the writers are very different people and we span the Atlantic, all of the contributors to Recovery Review have a … Continue reading 2023’s #2 Post: Hot topics in addiction and recovery
2023’s #5 Post: Lessons from Rehab
Residential rehab for drug and alcohol problems is a long-established treatment. Recent research has added to the evidence base. In this article, Dr David McCartney passes on the lessons learned from rehab at LEAP, taken from evaluation, research and experience.
2023’s #9 post: Why are you not drinking? Alcohol and Advertising
‘I notice you’re not drinking, David’, she said. It was more of a question than an observation, but I didn’t answer. We were in an upmarket restaurant having a meal with our professional peer group celebrating the successful delivery of a teaching course on addiction treatment. My colleague, a fellow addiction specialist (not a current … Continue reading 2023’s #9 post: Why are you not drinking? Alcohol and Advertising
Voices of Recovery
I was interviewed for a new enterprise - Recovery Voices - which launched this week. It's a great resource. In this article I link to a clip that captures how another doctor's recovery story changed my trajectory and how the adoption of an 'in recovery' identity was critical to moving on from dependent substance use.
Lessons from Rehab
Residential rehab for drug and alcohol problems is a long-established treatment. Recent research has added to the evidence base. In this article, Dr David McCartney passes on the lessons learned from rehab at LEAP, taken from evaluation, research and experience.
Why are you not drinking? Alcohol and Advertising
‘I notice you’re not drinking, David’, she said. It was more of a question than an observation, but I didn’t answer. We were in an upmarket restaurant having a meal with our professional peer group celebrating the successful delivery of a teaching course on addiction treatment. My colleague, a fellow addiction specialist (not a current … Continue reading Why are you not drinking? Alcohol and Advertising
Hot topics in addiction and recovery
What were the hot topics, burning themes and searing subjects in addiction recovery in 2022? I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the talking points on Recovery Review in 2022. Although the writers are very different people and we span the Atlantic, all of the contributors to Recovery Review have a … Continue reading Hot topics in addiction and recovery
2022’s #1 post: Is rehab effective? The results are in.
This summary of the research evidence provides verification that “that residential rehabilitation is associated with improvements across a variety of outcomes relating to substance use, health and quality of life”. Rehab is linked to improvements in mental health, offending, social engagement, employment, reduction in substance use and abstinence. There is little research that compares rehab with other treatments delivered in the community, but where there is, the evidence suggests that “residential treatment produces more positive outcomes in relation to substance use than other treatment modalities.” The review also suggests that rehab can be more cost-effective over time than other treatments