On the front line of the battle to save lives, charity workers say they are seeing the devastating impact of the new synthetic opioids first-hand.
In the woods at Glenbarr on the Kintyre peninsula, staff from the drug, alcohol and mental health charity With You are trying to treat trauma in a group designed to help former drug and alcohol users reconnect with nature.
Gareth Balmer, the charity’s national harm reduction lead, says nitazenes and other synthetic opioids are now appearing across the drug supply, from benzodiazepine (street Valium) pills and cannabinoids, known as spice, to cocaine and heroin.
“This is a frightening new landscape,” he said. “I don’t think drugs have ever been as risky or as dangerous as they are now.”
The result is that some users are experiencing unexpected and sometimes catastrophic overdoses.
“Some of these substances are so potent that a grain would be enough to take somebody over,” Balmer warned, adding that access to naloxone, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, is now more important than ever.