The Heroin And Opioid : Medication Assisted Treatment Essay

This rise in opioid abuse and overdose, warrants an increase in awareness. Over the years reversal agents have been developed and others are still under investigation. The most commonly used opioid reversal agent in the US is naloxone. Many organizations are reporting an increase in the number

Opioids are taking over the United States with its addictive composition, once patients are take opioids there is no escaping. The drug directed from opium which is obtained from a plant (Katz). Opioids are most commonly found in prescription pill from making underground sales more common. Since opioids are derived from a plant this makes the reality of home grown drugs more of an issue. American citizens overdosing on opioids is what is sparking the crisis because opioid “overdoses killed more people last year than guns or car accidents” (Katz). Opioids are extremely addictive and that is why so many citizens overdose on these types of drugs. After patients become hooked on opioids their body constantly is needing more and more opium to escape they pain they think they are enduring. The overdosing of Americans is not a small percentage of the population either, it is estimated that “over two million people in America have problem with opioids” proving this growing issue is an ongoing crisis (Katz). The United States government needs to take action immediately to the opioid crisis because doctors are overprescribing patients because they seemingly overreact to pain, and opioids are one of the most addictive drug types in the world.

In Nolan and Amico’s article, “How Bad is the Opioid Epidemic?” they argue the opioid epidemic has become the worst drug crisis in American history. Heroin and other opioids overdose kill more than 47,055 people a year. Deaths caused from drug overdose has outnumber as much as 40 percent compared to the death caused from car crashes in 2014 (Nolan and Amico 3). Furthermore, in 1999 there were only 15000 people died from drug overdose. This number has tripled in 15 years. Also, in his article, “America’s Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse” Volkow also presents the fact that “with an estimated 2.1 million people in the United States suffering from substance use disorders related to prescription opioid pain relievers in 2012 and an estimated 467,000 addicted to heroin. The consequences of this abuse have been devastating and are on the rise. For example, the number of unintentional overdose deaths from prescription pain relievers has

Various levels of governments in different communities across North America have initiated programs to deal with the opioid epidemic and its effect. Some of these initiatives will be examined in more details below.

As previously discussed, the program the author would choose to evaluate is MAT treatment programs. This population consists of individuals that have been diagnosed with opiate use disorder, and receive opiate-substitution medications, such as Methadone or Suboxone. These program evaluations would be consumer-centered, performed in the clinics they receive services. Interested stakeholders would include the treatment center where the participants receive services, as well as other MAT service providers. Additionally, the funding sources for these individuals and program centers, such as county, state, and federal agencies, along with medical insurers, would also gain value from the program evaluation research.

Many people may not realize this but multiple states, including Michigan, are facing an epidemic. It is not a disease, however, it is a heroin epidemic. In a country where addictive opioid pain-killer prescriptions are handed out like candy, it not surprising heroin, also known as smack or thunder, has become a serious problem. The current heroin epidemic Michigan is facing, as are dozens of other states, has spiraled out of control in recent years. In Michigan, some of the areas hit hardest by this drug are in the southern portion of the state, like Wayne, Oakland, and Monroe Counties. The connection between painkillers and heroin may not be clear, but this is because both are classified as opioid drugs, and therefore cause many of the same positive and negative side effects. As a country, we are currently the largest consumer of opioids in the world; almost the entire world supply of hydrocodone (the opioid in Vicodin) and 81% of the world’s oxycodone (in Percocet and OxyContin) is used by the United States (Volkow). Along with consuming most of the world’s most common opioids, we have gone from 76 million of these prescriptions in 1991 to 207 million in 2013 – constantly increasing except for a small decrease starting in 2012 (Volkow). This widespread use has caused numerous consequences from increasing emergency room visits – for both painkillers and heroin – to sky-rocking overdose cases all over the country (Volkow). Michigan, unfortunately, currently has one of the

Currently in Ontario there are approximately 30,000 people, between the ages of 15 and 49, using illicit opioids on a regular basis. (Hart 2007) Opioid use is a costly and dangerous social problem and is the fastest growing drug problem in the country. The good news is that there is a treatment that has been proven by research and evidence to be effective. Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) is a long term treatment program used to treat opioid dependence and addiction.(Source) MMT works by preventing withdrawal symptoms in opiate users. It also prevents the euphoria the user is seeking from other opiates. MMT uses the drug of Methadone to do this. Methadone is a synthetic opioid commonly used to treat opioid dependence.(Source)

Medication assistant treatment also known as (MAT) is when a person has presented with an opioid addiction and have challenges stopping and/or abstaining from opioid use and they are prescribed either Methadone, Suboxone, or Vivitrol. Those who are in support for MAT is that this a better alternative to having individuals addicted to illicit substances. The other side to MAT is that this is way to keep individuals addicted to drugs, legally. I do not support MAT treatment as a form of long term treatment and not as the solution for opioid addiction. Serving as an Addiction Counselor and working with individuals who are addicted to opioids, I encounter many individuals who are or at one point utilized

Solution l: Other drug treatment facilities use partial opioid agonists like methadone and suboxone. Suboxone is a combination of two drugs that reward a user for correct usage, block the effects of other opioids, and if misused gives a nasty hangover. The drug gives the user similar

Methadone is a synthetic opioid drug which was first used in World War II for the treatment of pain. Since then, methadone has become a popular choice for treating those addicted to other opioid drugs such as heroin, oxycodone, morphine, and hydrocodone. It is used to reduce dependency and the treatment should help them become clean. Even though, the policy of giving methadone to drug addicts is not a cure, it is a good one. Fortunately, the Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) is a reliable way for those with an opioid addiction to stop and not restart the use of opioids. For many, methadone treatment provides an opportunity to regain balance in both lifestyle and priorities. (“Opiate Addiction and Treatment Resource”). Everyone deserves

I agree that medications should be used as a treatment intervention to treat substance-related disorders if it is supportive and helpful. Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) is used in combination with counseling and it is primarily used for clients who are dependent on alcohol and opiates (McNeece & DiNitto, 2012). McNeece and DiNitto (2012) notes that MAT reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms by either imitating the actions of the brain’s chemicals (agonists), encourage negative feeling about the substance that is being abused (analogs), or blocks the effects that come with using a substance (antagonist); however, no medication promises a cure. For example, buprenorphine imitates the effects of opioid by restricting the effects, so it

The buprenorphine MAT model often mandates that individuals are actively engaged in counseling in order to participate in the MAT portion of their treatment, i.e. receiving their prescription of buprenorphine. If a counselor, who may even believe in an abstinence-based model of substance abuse treatment, is engaged with a client currently utilizing MAT, it would be highly beneficial for them to have a basic understanding of MAT and common preconceptions and experiences of the population with MAT. Additionally, it would be beneficial for clinicians to have a basic understanding of the medications themselves, in terms of common symptoms, effects, and social perceptions of MAT as a treatment approach. Client’s will experience these first hand, and the role of the counselor will be to aid them through their process and journey of

Heroin Usage has become a huge problem through our country and our communities in the past decade. Approximately 13.5 million people in the world use opioids, but other surveys indicate that this number is larger now. In fact, according to The National Institute on drug abuse, in 2010, there were 2,789 deaths and in 2011, there were about 4,102 deaths (2015).

Heroin addiction is considered one of the worst drug addiction in the whole world and this is a global problem, although several countries try to prevent importation of heroin by different methods many people still have it by an illegal methods. Heroin addiction causes different types of medical and social problems. Therefore, the medical science and society work seriously to find treatment for heroin addiction. This essay will examine the most effective methods of treatment for heroin addiction including pharmacological treatments such as naltrexone, methadone and buprenorphine, and behavioral treatments. Then it will discuss that a combination of these two methods is efficient in heroin addiction treatment. It will also argue that social

Harm reduction through Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) is said to be effective in treating dependence to illicit drugs and preventing new HIV, HCV and HBV infections to PWIDs (R. Douglas Bruce and Rebecca A. Schleifer, 2008). According to Dore GJ et al (2002), Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) has been shown to improve life functioning and decrease heroin use as well as criminal behavior. It has an effect on drug use practices, such as needle sharing, which increases HIV risk and HIV infection consequently. Solomon SS et al (2008) says short-term methadone detoxification treatment, usually for twenty one (21) days in duration, was proposed as an alternative to MMT but had poor retention and high relapse rates.