The MSP for Renfrewshire North and West has toured a residential rehab centre in her constituency, meeting people recovering from addiction and the staff who care for them.
Natalie Don visited Abbeycare in Erskine earlier today to hear about its life-changing drug and alcohol detoxification and rehabilitation services.
She spoke to current residents and members of Abbeycare’s aftercare groups about their experiences of addiction, and how they started themselves on the road to recovery.
She also heard from staff at the facility, many of whom have previously been through rehab themselves and now use their experiences to inform their care of others.
Natalie Don is the Scottish Government’s minister for children, young people and the promise, but was visiting the facility in her capacity as the local MSP.
Her visit comes after Christina McKelvie, Scotland’s drugs and alcohol policy minister, toured the centre in April and spent time with people in recovery to hear about their experiences.
Abbeycare Scotland provides continuous care for people with alcohol and drug addictions all under one roof, offering supervised detoxification and rehabilitation.
Its programmes also include harm reduction interventions, counselling, recovery care planning, family support and extensive aftercare to services help people address the issues behind their addictions.
The centre at Erskine Mains House accepts admissions from across Scotland, including both private patients and local authority referrals.
Natalie Don MSP said: “I was very grateful to have the opportunity to visit Abbeycare residential rehab centre in Erskine to get an insight into the vital care and support they provide to people across the constituency and beyond.
“Drug and alcohol addictions are significant issues in Scotland, causing damage to individuals, their loved ones, and entire communities.
“Facilities like Abbeycare are crucial to reducing the harms and providing effective intervention and treatment, tying in closely with the Scottish Government’s national commitments.
“It was great to speak with some of the service users about the positive difference the care has made on their lives, and it is clear from their stories that the staff do a brilliant job.”
Liam Mehigan, operations director at Abbeycare, said: “We were delighted to welcome Natalie to our centre in Erskine to tell her about the important work we do supporting people in recovery from drug and alcohol addictions.
“During her tour of our facilities, she was able to hear first-hand from the people we treat about the life-changing impact that abstinence-based rehab and detox services can have.
“Many of our staff are her local constituents, so it was great for them to meet their local MSP and tell her about the incredible work they do every day.
“We believe that residential rehab has a key role to play in reducing the number of people dying in Scotland due to drugs and alcohol misuse, alongside other specialist crisis and stabilisation services.”