He said poly drug use – using more than one type of substance – is particularly prevalent in Scotland and cocaine is a notable feature in drug data.
Prof Katikireddi said: “In terms of actually tracking things through to the amount of overdoses, ambulance call-outs, these kind of measures you can view as harder health outcomes – that can often take some time and it depends a bit on how big the service is ….
It will take several years for the full health impact of the UK’s first safer drugs consumption room in Glasgow to be understood, MPs have been told.
A group of experts giving evidence to Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee said international evidence suggests that local communities will see benefits from such facilities.
Professor Vittal Katikireddi, of Glasgow University, is involved in the evaluation of the pilot scheme and was one of those giving evidence on Wednesday.
