Pubdate: Thu, 11 Sep 2003 Source: Roanoke Times (VA) Copyright: 2003 Roanoke Times Contact: http://www.roanoke.com/roatimes/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/368 Author: Laurence Hammack Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/oxycontin.htm (Oxycontin/Oxycodone) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?136 (Methadone) METHADONE CLINIC PLANNED FOR REGION Area residents now must travel to Galax or Charlottesville for treatment. A drug rehabilitation center plans to open a methadone clinic in Southwest Roanoke County that will be a treatment hub for addicts of opium-based drugs such as OxyContin and heroin. Officials with the Life Center of Galax said Wednesday they have signed a lease with the owner of a building at 3390 Colonial Ave. The building, which sits at Ogden Road and Colonial Avenue, is the former site of a family medical clinic. When the operation reaches full capacity, between 200 and 300 recovering addicts will visit the clinic regularly to receive doses of methadone, according to Tina Renee Bullins, chief executive officer of the Life Center. For the past year, the Life Center has been considering opening a satellite methadone clinic in the Roanoke Valley to address a growing problem with addiction to OxyContin, a prescription painkiller often converted into a street drug. There has not been a methadone clinic in the Roanoke Valley since the early 1970s, and area residents must travel to Galax or Charlottesville for treatment. "Roanoke needs it," Bullins said. There is no projected opening date, as the proposed clinic must pass a battery of inspections and license reviews before accepting patients. Methadone clinics are closely regulated by a number of state and federal agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Virginia Board of Pharmacy and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Bullins said the site does not need to be rezoned because a methadone clinic falls into the same category as the medical facility that previously occupied the building. Methadone clinics are often controversial, with adjacent property owners raising concerns about an influx of recovering drug addicts in their neighborhood and the accompanying problems with traffic and crime. Bullins said those fears are misplaced. But, she said, officials with the Life Center will be happy to speak with any residents who might have concerns. "We are committed to helping people understand that it is a form of treatment and that a lot of the stereotypes don't apply," she said. For the most part, people who enroll in methadone clinics are committed to getting off drugs and pose few problems to the surrounding area, Life Center officials say. The proposed site is close to Tanglewood Mall, a number of apartment complexes and New Vista Montessori School. Methadone is a synthetic narcotic that curbs addicts' craving for opium-based drugs and prevents them from going into withdrawal. Addicts who enroll in methadone clinics are treated on an outpatient basis, getting daily doses of the drug in a liquid form while also receiving counseling and other forms of treatment. Methadone also is dispensed in a tablet form frequently prescribed by physicians as a painkiller. While studies have shown that methadone is an effective treatment tool, the drug also has been abused by a growing number of addicts. Officials with the state medical examiner's office and state police have said methadone abusers in Southwest Virginia apparently use the tablet form . Last year, there were 62 fatal methadone overdoses in the western half of Virginia, according to Assistant Chief Medical Examiner William Massello. There were 26 fatal overdoses attributed to oxycodone, the active ingredient in OxyContin, and another 21 from heroin or morphine, Massello said. Officials with the Life Center, which operates methadone clinics in Galax and Tazewell County, have said they have not had problems with fatal overdoses or widespread crime by patients - a statement that is backed up by law enforcement. In an interview last year, Galax Police Chief Rick Clark said the clinic did not produce an unusually large number of calls to police. Opinions from nearby residents were mixed, with the primary concern being heavy traffic early in the morning when recovering addicts arrive to be "dosed" before going to work. Other law enforcement officials are more skeptical, however. "You take somebody off of heroin, and you're going to get them hooked on methadone, and you're going to have them coming in from all areas of the state," Botetourt County Sheriff Ronnie Sprinkle said last year. Botetourt County was one of the areas considered by the Life Center for a clinic. Yet few dispute the need for additional drug treatment options in the area. "Opiate addiction continues to be an undertreated problem in the area, and the Life Center is pleased to be closer to offering these services in Roanoke," Bullins said. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh