Pubdate: Sat, 23 Aug 2014
Source: StarPhoenix, The (CN SN)
Copyright: 2014 The StarPhoenix
Contact: http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/400

POSITIVE NEWS ON METHADONE

The doubling of the number of methadone users in Saskatchewan over the
past five years is as much a good news story as it is one that
reflects the problems associated with an economic boom and Canada's
lax approach to monitoring the prescribing of opioids.

Certainly, it's a positive sign when the number of addicts seeking
help to overcome their dependence on everything from heroin and
morphine to prescription drugs such as Oxycodone rose to about 2,900
last year from 1,400 in 2008.

Yet, the higher numbers also likely reflect the fact that there simply
are more people across the province today who are using and abusing
opioid drugs, partly as a result of having the wherewithal to obtain
them illegally and also because doctors in Saskatchewan, like their
colleagues elsewhere across Canada, are writing more prescriptions for
opioids.

As a story in The StarPhoenix reports today, the number of opioid
prescriptions submitted to the Saskatchewan Drug Plan increased to
300,000 in 2013 from about 200,000 in 2005.

As Dr. David Juurlink, head of the division of Clinical Pharmacology
and Toxicology at the University of Toronto, points out in a column
written for Troy Media, "We now face a public health crisis of
exceptional scale - an epidemic fuelled by well-meaning doctors,
expectant patients and corporate interests, and perpetuated by
government inertia."

A response in Saskatchewan to the growing problem with opiate
addictions has been to remove the cap that was in place on the number
of people who could use methadone. Today, 86 doctors are licensed to
prescribe methadone throughout Saskatchewan, with clinics in
Saskatoon, Regina, Prince Albert and Kamsack where prescribing,
dispensing and counselling services are provided. North Battleford and
Yorkton have been identified as other sites that need more
comprehensive treatment options.

As recently as July 2012, a major stumbling block to providing
methadone treatment was not just the lack of qualified doctors, but
also a dearth of addictions counsellors to work with those who want to
wean themselves off morphine, heroin and other drugs by using
methadone. In Saskatoon, only those who were HIV-positive or pregnant
were being admitted to the program in the interest of
harm-reduction.

As Dr. Morris Markentin, who is now medical manager of the methadone
program for the Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons, said
in 2012, "It's not just writing a prescription and sending the person
out the door.

"If you don't offer a full package and just want to prescribe
methadone, then we might as well put it in vending machines in the
street. They are using (drugs) because they have underlying issues,
and if you don't deal with the underlying issues, you can't help."

He is still calling for a more comprehensive approach to treating
additions, including more rehab beds in medical facilities, more
access to counselling and life skills training.

The removal of the cap on the number of methadone recipients alone
won't solve the problem, but it's a start to addressing an issue that
extends to everything from crime rates to the number of HIV infections
to family dysfunction.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D