Too many young people die due to drugs in Finland. What can we do about it?

The number of drug-related deaths of young people has increased heavily in recent years, and Finland is one of the countries with the most drug-related deaths of young people in Europe. Every year, underage children also die because of drugs.

Source: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (2022), European Drug Report 2022: Trends and Developments, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.

The themed investigation will study:
• What kind of direct and indirect factors leading to death can be identified behind the drug-related deaths of young people
• How the services offered for young drug users meet their needs
• How the referral to care and treatment have been realised in the wellbeing services counties
• What other kinds of support the young people had received in their situation
• The roles, duties, cooperation and practical measures of the different authorities in preventing drug-related deaths of young people.

The police, the National Institute for Health and Welfare, the Ombudsman for Children as well as the association Aseman Lapset ry answer questions on the video:

Finland is one of the countries with the most drug-related deaths of young people. What does that make you think?
"Why is it important to find out the reasons behind drug-related deaths of young people?

You can watch the short video (in Finnish) via this link

“Drug use is influenced by many different factors, the importance of which needs to be better understood. The social and health service system plays a key role in the prevention and treatment of substance abuse. Every drug-related death must be prevented, as there is hope as long as a person is alive. In the treatment of addictive diseases, multidisciplinary cooperation and long-term work with the patient are essential”, says Marina Erhola, Director of the Pirkanmaa wellbeing services county.

The purpose of the investigation by the Safety Investigation Authority is to improve public safety. The safety investigation is not conducted in order to attribute legal liability, and therefore the investigation does not consider issues related to guilt, responsibility or liability for damages. However, the investigation is carried out in cooperation with several authorities, and the contribution of the police and the National Institute for Health and Welfare in particular is important for the implementation of the investigation. We will also hear and consult other parties that do work related to the substance abuse of young people. The Safety Investigation Authority also is a partner in the multi-year research project by the National Institute for Health and Welfare, the Finnish Youth Research Society, the A-Clinic Foundation as well as the universities of Helsinki, Tampere and Turku that aims to find solutions to violent, suicidal and drug-related deaths of young people (Young Despair).

As the Invstigator-in-Charg Hanna Tiirinki, Safety Investigation Authority, states: "The purpose of the themed investigation is to find recommendations for preventing drug-related deaths of young people more effectively." There are many parties involved in this work.

Further information:
Head of the Investigation Hanna Tiirinki, tel. +358 2951 50747, email: [email protected]; @htiirinki

You can follow the discussion on Twitter (in Finnish) with the hashtags #huumeteema, nuorten #huumekuolemat

The video is produced by Youngfield.