Opiate addiction is a major individual and public health problem. The intangible cost of broken families, unstable communities, increased crime due to drug seeking behaviors and most importantly increased disease transmission, mean that opiate addiction is a concern for addicted individuals and society. (Methadone, 2010) Heroin addiction and the mode of administration is frightening because people are knowingly engaging in life threatening behavior with the sharing of injection needles, a practice known as “shooting”. Heroin use is often associated with blood borne diseases and infections, due to sharing of needles. The supply of illegal drugs will always rise to meet the demand, regardless of law enforcement efforts and the “emergence of AIDS in the 1980’s gave urgency to treat heroin addicts” as reported by National Institute of Drug Abuse.
When reviewing the Federal Regulations of Methadone Treatment, it states that: Methadone is used to treat opiate addiction by detoxification and maintenance, Methadone maintenance treatment is usually provided as an outpatient treatment program. Programs are similar in operation and all include a location for dispensing medication, offices for confidential counseling, an examining room and an area designated for administrative and non-clinical personnel may take placeunit have four common features
Methadone is used as a substitution to Heroin and prevents opioid intoxication and withdrawal. Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) is undoubtedly the most common prescribed treatment for heroin addiction. Just as with medication management of other serious chronic illness, using methadone seeks to support patients in improving their quality of life. Addiction science has come a long wa...
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On the typical day, over 90 people will die at the hand of opioid abuse in America alone (National). In fact, as of 2014, nearly 2 million Americans were dependent and abusing opioids. The Opioid Crisis has affected America and its citizens in various ways, including health policy, health care, and the life in populous areas. Due to the mass dependence and mortality, the crisis has become an issue that must be resolved in all aspects.
The documentary states that over 27,000 deaths a year are due to overdose from heroin and other opioids. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in 2015 prescription pain relievers account for 20,101 overdose deaths, and 12,990 overdose deaths are related to heroin (Rudd et al., 2010-2015). The documentary’s investigation gives the history of how the heroin epidemic started, with a great focus on the hospice movement. We are presented with the idea that once someone is addicted to painkillers, the difficulty in obtaining the drug over a long period of time becomes too expensive and too difficult. This often leads people to use heroin. This idea is true as a 2014 survey found that 94% of respondents who were being treated for opioid addiction said they chose to use heroin because prescription opioids were “more expensive and harder to obtain (Cicero et al., 2014).” Four in five heroin users actually started out using prescription painkillers (Johns, 2013). This correlation between heroin and prescription painkiller use supports the idea presented in the documentary that “prescription opiates are heroin prep school.”
Tanner, G., Bordon, N., Conroy, S., & Best, D. (2011). Comparing methadone and suboxone in
...y, H. (2008). Drug use and abuse: a comprehensive introduction (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.
The dependence on hard core drugs in the United States is on a continuous climb. Heroin is the leading reason for this. Considered by many to be the hardest of hard drugs, thus making heroin a very popular choice among drug addicts. Heroin is a narcotic produced from the opium of the poppy plant and poses a serious risk to society. Since it could be injected, snorted or smoked heroin also causes health complications and the possibility of death. Sadly, none of that matters to an addict because they only want their next fix. A century ago the doctors who developed heroin were only hoping for a way to help patients, they were unaware their new found medicine would lead to decades of addiction, abuse, health problems and even death for many.
This leads to the second school of thought on medically assisted treatment. There has been a great deal of debate about the medication used to treat Opiate addiction, methadone. Many feel that the drug methadone is simply trading one drug in for another, as the addiction to methadone is quick and almost more powerful than an opiate addiction (Nelson, 1994). The withdrawals effects are far more intense with methadone and for this reason it is a lifetime maintenance medication. Some suggest that more rehabilitative programs are needed that would address the social problems the users have to help them recover, instead of the methadone program that is viewed...
In 2016 Americans are turning to heroin to deal with their despair, pain and turmoil in their lives, subsequently causing an opiate epidemic. This point is further evidenced by the following statement
Since the year 2000, there have been nearly 250,000 deaths caused by an overdose on opioids, which are painkillers, and heroin (Katel). Many have suffered through the pain of losing a loved one and have pushed for the idea of injection sites. The purpose behind a safe injection site is to produce a safe environment that gradually reduces the addictive mentality and the possibility of an overdose. These centers are a place where addicts are permitted to shoot up with doctors and medical advisors supervising. A group of health providers, police and social services in Seattle are proposing opening two injection sites in response to a
“Meth, not even once” is a popular phrase that is associated with this drug. This drug has many known horrible effects associated with it, plus many effects more I am sure are going to be discovered over time. I am intending to cover the history, effects, the different categories of meth abuse, and the withdrawal effects of Methamphetamine in this paper, and what to do if you suspect someone you know is using meth.
There are many contributing factors and political issues that address substance abuse. Throughout the years, many researchers have designed many interventions and social policies designed to treat people who have used, abused, and became addicted to substances. Today, there are many new studies that address substance abuse at the individual, group, family, and community or policy levels. Today, there are many services that are effective for decreasing recidivism in youth who have completed a substance abuse program. A substance abuse treatment program or center is the best way to treat individuals who have abused substances.
The use of heroin is increasing in almost every part of the United States. All age groups are all over the drug, including high school and middle school students. What doesn't help is that the availability of heroin has increased as well. New sources and networks of distribution have been reported. The comeback of heroin is not only apparent in the inner cities; it has been making its way to suburban life as well.
Understanding this problem begins with education about the type of drugs being abused. Opiates, or opioids, are a type of drug that relieves pain. Painkillers interact with nerve endings in the brain, stopping them from sending the message to your brain that you are in pain. Taking this medication results in lose of pain and a temporary high. If a patient takes pain pills for too long, they can begin to form a tolerance to lower doses, causing the physician to have to continually raise the amount being put into their bodies. After extended use, opiates can cause iatrogenic addiction, “most likely to occur with long-term use and/or high does of a prescription drug” (Kendal1 l75). Even though opiates have been used to treat pain in the medical field for years, research is indicating negative side effects. Some of these, interesting enou...
Opioid usage has been prominent in the past couple of years, but studies from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre have become more impotent to inform about the increased addiction across the globe. The mortality rate in opioids are higher than other drugs due to its addictive properties, thus leading to overdose. Overdosing on opioids isn’t just common in adolescents as once thought, yet it is frequent in adults as well. This information will provide proper education for the purpose of hindering this epidemic.
The Journal of Neuroscience Dobler-Mikola, A. Gschwed, P. Gutzwiller, F. Steffen, T. Rehm, J. Uch engagen, A. Feasibility, Safety, and Efficacy of Injectable Heroin Prescription for Refractory Opioid Addicts: a follow-up study. The Lancet, volume 358, pg. 1417-1420. Everitt, B. Robbins, T. (1999) Drug addiction: bad habits add up. Macmillian Magazines, volume 389, pg.
Drug abuse has been a hot topic for our society due to how stimulants interfere with health, prosperity, and the lives of others in all nations. All drugs have the potential to be misapplied, whether obtained by prescription, over the counter, or illegally. Drug abuse is a despicable disease that affects many helpless people. Majority of those who are beset with this disease go untreated due to health insurance companies who neglect and discriminate this issue. As an outcome of missed opportunities of treatments, abusers become homeless, very ill, or even worst, death.