Methadone was first produced in the 1930’s to be a go to drug instead of morphine due to the high addiction rate morphine has. Over time Methadone has been used to help heroin addicts as well as opiate addicts. The purpose of this drug was to be a pain reliever and now is used to help wean and manage addiction. There are negative side effects to methadone as well but the most common side effect again is addiction. So is methadone just a different crutch? Firstly, I will discuss the history and origin of methadone. Secondly, I will discuss the doctor’s role in methadone maintenance treatment programs as well as the benefits of methadone maintenance. Lastly I will discuss the dangers of methadone.
The chemical structure of methadone was first produced in the 1930’s when a group of German scientists were trying to replace morphine with a drug that is not as addictive. (1) “In 1937 Max Bockmhl and Gustav Ehrhart discovered a synthetic substance they called Hoechst 10820 or polamidon.”(1) During World War II German scientists continued previous research and “synthesized the substance” due to short supply of morphine and other pain relievers. At the end of World War II the United States obtained the rights to the drug and later named the drug methadone. In 1947 it was discovered that methadone was useful for a few reasons. It was a pain reliever with less addictive qualities as well as a treatment for narcotic addiction. This medication was seen to be a treatment or at least a “manager” of addiction due to the long-acting nature of the drug it was thought to have less side effects and potential for harmful effects. (1)
In 1960 Heroin addiction grew and scientists were looking for something to help in detoxing addicts. During withdraw...
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...imes a day due to the buildup in a person’s body. It can also disrupt the hearts rhythm, and is risky when taken with other painkillers. (7)
In conclusion I think methadone is a useful medication and can do great things for addicts wanting to overcome their addiction. However it should be a medication given only when closely followed by a doctor. Like Mr. McDowell stated it is extremely tempting to hand over an opiate of any kind and expect the addict to take it as directed. Putting that much responsibility into addict’s hands is more than most are capable of handling. Like any drug it is sold on the streets as well as prescribed by a doctor. Police treat methadone the same as any other drug as well. It seems to me that it is our doctors and treatment facilities that need more education and requirements for disbursement that could help the statistics turn around.
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 methadone program at Rosthern Hospital is a very active and intense program. Boast over 20 patients that are regular methadone users, the involvement of the physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and addiction counselors are key (Melle, 2016). Dr. Melle is the coordinator of the methadone program at Rosthern Hospital. His roles include, patient recruitment, patient care management, follow up care, and most importantly prescription and dosage of the methadone (Melle, 2016). Pharmacist’s role in methadone treatment is providing the methadone to the hospital, as well as in Warman pharmacy they monitor and dispense some methadone to some of the patients in the methadone program. Addiction counselors are an outside resource that the staff at Rosthern hospital can utilize. There are not social workers or counselors at Rosthern, but Dr. Melle and the nurses prefer if their patients are regularly seeing an addiction counselor while in the methadone program. Finally, the nurses role in the methadone program is early treatment and monitoring of patients during detox, the continued monitoring or patients when methadone doses change, dispensing methadone and monitoring our patients in the recovery program, and observation of patient’s success during the program. Together the interprofessional team has successfully treated dozens of patients, and the methadone program address the needs of both the patients and the addiction issues that are plaguing the surrounding communities (Melle,
And in the long run, I don’t think that it’s worth it to showcase needle exchange as the top preventer of the transmission of HIV. I am all for methadone treatment because of the fact that opiates are extremely hard to get off and in this way it is proven that the addicts can at least try to assimilate themselves back into normal living if that is their wish.
Tanner, G., Bordon, N., Conroy, S., & Best, D. (2011). Comparing methadone and suboxone in
"Rohypnol - Consequences." Encyclopedia of Drugs and Addictive Substances. Ed. Barbara C. Bigelow. Gale Cengage, 2006. eNotes.com. 2006. 30 Mar, 2011 http://www.enotes.com/drugs-substances-encyclopedia/
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...
McGovern, M. P., Xie, H., Segal, S. R., Siembab, L., & Drake, R. E. (2006). Addiction treatment
It was the late 19th century when a lot of conflict for families from the Industrial Revolution and illegal drugs had easy access to anyone in the United Sates. These illegal drugs like morphine, cocaine, and alcohol were available through manufacture, delivery, and selling. It was proved that the over use of alcohol and violence in families’ homes were linked together around the 1850’s and that women and children were being abused by the father and husband from the letters and journals that were wrote. These were times when women were stay at home mothers and it was the man’s responsibility to be the provider for the wife and children. Because of the abuse in the household it led up to the temperance movement. The purpose
Drug use and abuse is as old as mankind itself. Human beings have always had a desire to eat or drink substances that make them feel relaxed, stimulated, or euphoric. Wine was used at least from the time of the early Egyptians; narcotics from 4000 B.C.; and medicinal use of marijuana has been dated to 2737 B.C. in China. But it was not until the nineteenth century that the active substances in drugs were extracted. There was a time in history when some of these newly discovered substances, such as morphine, laudanum, cocaine, were completely unregulated and prescribed freely by physicians for a wide variety of ailments.
Heroin was originally synthesized in 1874 by a man named C.R Alder Wright. Created as a solution to opium, a drug that had plagued many American households. It was originally produced for medical purposes evidently becoming highly addictive. Heroin “... was originally marketed as a non-addictive substance” (“History of Addiction”) which inevitably increased its popularity. It became especially popular in places of poverty. Heroin became a solution to struggle. So common it was almost as if heroin was a prescribed medicine for hardship. Known as “[a] treatment of many illnesses and pain” (“A brief history of addiction”) but later revealed that it caused more harm than good. Being so easily accessible it became immensely common among musicians.
Methamphetamine created in 1919 in Japan. It went into wide use for both sides during World War II and it was especially used by Japanese pilots before their flights. Once the war was over, leftover storage of Methamphetamine went public resulting in extremely high amounts of abuse with this drug. During the 1950’s this drug was used as a diet aid and was also used in the thought that it helped to fight depression. It was also over used by college students, truck drivers, and athletes because of its easy availability. This pattern increased remarkably in the 1960’s when this drug became more available in an injectable form. The United States Government in the 1970’s made Meth, for most uses, illegal which then resulted in Mexican drug trafficking organizations to set up large labs in California. Today most of this drug that is available comes from Thailand, Myanmar, and China. (History of Methamphetam...
Substance addiction is becoming an epidemic. While some people can quit using a substance without any help, most people need help to their recovery. Narcotics anonymous is an important support group for our society. There are many different narcotic anonymous programs to join that have meetings throughout the week. The members of the support group all share one thing in common, they suffer from different types of chemical dependency. Members help each other because they have the same problems and worries that everyone in the room has. Though they may be struggling with different stages in their life, for the most part, they all relate to what each is going through. Just as AA, NA focuses on the 12-step program. The members of
4) Siegel, S., Hinson, R.E., Krank, M.D. and McCully, J. Heroin "overdose" death: contribution of drug-associated environmental cues. Science 216, 436-437 (1982)
Methamphetamine’s (Meth) abuse has rapidly become a highly additive stimulant and has led to a serious problem in the US. Data collected in 2012 by the Nation Survey on Drugs and Health found that over 12 million people have tried meth at least once, that’s roughly 4.7 percent of the population.
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.