Having battled arthritis, back problems and substance addiction, Reggie Carroll has been through the school of hard knocks — but nothing prepared him for being stabbed by his ice-addicted son.

Key points: Critics argue more money should be spent on health initiatives and less on policing the drug problem

Critics argue more money should be spent on health initiatives and less on policing the drug problem The federal government has announced $3 million for a rehabilitation centre in Dubbo

The federal government has announced $3 million for a rehabilitation centre in Dubbo But locals are calling on the state government to pick up a $4.5 million shortfall

Drugs have almost destroyed the Dubbo man's family — he buried his brother and another son after both died of drug overdoses — and is now trying to get help for two of his remaining sons in the grip of ice addiction.

And it's a difficult task given ice is so readily available in the central-western NSW city.

"You see ice everywhere here in Dubbo — I've even walked around and picked up bags [of it] on the street," he said.

Mr Carroll said it's been hard to be near his sons due to their aggression while on the drug and his biggest fear is a repeat of the violent stabbing inflicted on him on Father's Day last year.

"It's hard to see them destroy themselves and not able to help themselves … I don't know what to do at times."

The drug crisis in Dubbo and other regional centres — and its effect on law and order — looms as an issue in the federal election on May 18.

It's an issue that almost derailed the Nationals in the recent NSW election, with the party narrowly holding onto the seat of Dubbo, despite a 18.4 swing against the party.

Time will tell whether the Nationals will suffer the same fate in the federal seat of Parkes, which it safely holds with a margin of 15.1 per cent.

Irene May said it is common in Dubbo for grandparents to care for grandchildren. ( Supplied: Bobby May )

But what is clear is that the drug problem has become such a burden that locals want action now — in the form of a drug rehabilitation centre in the heart of Dubbo.

Irene May is convinced that her grandson Corey would still be alive if he'd had access to such a facility.

Corey May died by suicide just shy of his 21st birthday. ( Supplied: Irene May )

He died by suicide seven years ago, just shy of his 21st birthday, after battling drug addiction and stints in jail.

Five other family members have also experienced addiction and Ms May is now caring for one of their young children.

She said it was not unusual for grandparents to step in when their own children were unable to care for their offspring due to addiction.

"These kids need help, they really need help," she said.

"Without the grandparents being there to protect the grandkids, [child protection services] would have them."

A 'merry-go-round of stupidity'

With just three weeks until the federal election, Aboriginal health worker Trevor 'Jimmy' Forrest said locals had one message for politicians: "build a rehab here in Dubbo".

Methamphetamine use in the city has risen 66 per cent in the past two years, compared with the NSW average of 9.7 per cent.

In the same period, domestic-violence related offences in Dubbo jumped 64.5 per cent — almost three times the state average.

Mr Forrest refers local men to other drug and alcohol services — the closest being 150 kilometres away in Orange — and said people as young as 14 were using ice.

"[We] just can't get them into rehabs, it's just so hard — they're always full," Mr Forrest said.

"Sometimes they have to travel up to 600 kilometres, they're then off country and they're always lost."

As the gateway to the western region and with a population of about 50,000, it was unacceptable that Dubbo did not have a dedicated local rehabilitation centre, Mr Forrest said.

But change could be on its way.

Health worker Trevor 'Jimmy' Forrest (L) has been supporting Reggie Carroll (R). ( ABC News: Jessie Davies )

In what some locals have dubbed as a sign politicians are listening, just days after the NSW election, the federal government announced $3 million over two years for a rehabilitation centre.

The funding will go towards developing a 15-bed rehabilitation facility and eight-bed detox unit, with Dubbo Regional Council agreeing to provide land.

But with $5 million overall required for the facility's construction, along with $2.5 million annually for operational costs, many suggest it's now up to the State Government to make it a reality.

The NSW Government has said it would consider recommendations by a recent parliamentary inquiry that a drug court be established in Dubbo, along with extra rehabilitation services.

The Government's fledgling Special Commission of Inquiry into the Drug Ice is also expected to hold a hearing in Dubbo soon, but the city's mayor Ben Shields said action — not more inquiries — was needed.

"It's an absolute merry-go-round of stupidity going on," Cr Shields said.

"I don't know how many more inquiries you need to do to work out that the drug ice — in fact a lot of the illegal narcotics — are bad for you and is causing a breakdown within society."

'Two systems of justice at work'

Bill Dickens from Legal Aid NSW said the justice system was "flawed and imbalanced", with money continuing to go toward policing initiatives and prison expansion, rather than health initiatives.

"Really, if you look across New South Wales there's two systems of justice at work here," Mr Dickens said.

"There's one for people in regional and remote communities, and there's another for people who happen to live on the other side of the sandstone curtain.

"This needs to be treated as a health issue, and if it's treated as a health issue then we might begin to get some different results."

But NSW Police acting western region commander Greg Moore denied this was the case, pointing to the success of the justice reinvestment model in Bourke, further west.

The bold experiment, which concentrates resources into early intervention and targeted diversionary programs, only last month secured $1.8 million from the federal and NSW governments.

Superintendent Moore said there was every chance the model could be used in Dubbo.

A spokeswoman for the Western NSW Local Health District said the government provided a "wide range" of drug and alcohol services, including specialist counselling and an opiod treatment program.

But for Irene May and Reggie Carroll, nothing short of a dedicated rehabilitation centre will improve the city's addiction problems.

They only wish their loved ones had survived long enough to see it.