When I started working in addiction treatment to reliably access residential rehab in Scotland you had to live in the right area, be wealthy or just plain lucky. I heard it too often from patients and families who could see what was needed and, despite their best efforts, couldn't get near it. When we argued … Continue reading Mission Accomplished? Rehab in Scotland, Five Years On
Author: Dr David McCartney
Addiction Medicine Specialist
When Grassroots Runs Ahead: What Cocaine Anonymous (CA) in Scotland Tells Us About Drug Policy
'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
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