Punjab has lost the battle against drug addiction even before it has
begun, a study by All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS),
Delhi, has indicated.
10+ years to provide a single treatment episode
It will take more than 10 years for the state government to provide
even a single episode of treatment to addicts if it continues with the
current strategies, the survey by the institute's National Drug
Dependence Treatment Centre says, painting a grim picture of the days
ahead.
A single episode of treatment is a standard course of treatment
ranging from a minimum of four-to-six weeks to six months where the
patient is given opioid substitution treatment (OST) that involves
medication like methadone or buprenorphine to help him wean away from
drugs. The study points out that Punjab does not have OST for the
patients as a widely available therapy on a long term basis.
There is a huge gap in the availability of treatment services for opioid-dependent individuals despite significant demand
OST is the most evidence-based treatment modality which has been
endorsed by United Nations and World Health Organisation as well as the
Indian Psychiatric Society. In Punjab, less than 10% of patients have
received OST ever," says the study. The survey, commissioned by the
Union ministry of social justice and empowerment in August 2015, has in
fact ridiculed the approach by the Punjab government, saying that it is
only focused on rehabilitation centres.
"If the treatment strategies remain focused on only treatment admission
to a de-addiction centre, it will take about 10 years to provide a
single episode of treatment to the entire opioid dependent population in
the state," it said. It further says that many drug dependent
individuals are trying to give up but not many are receiving help from
the government. "Our survey indicates that while as many as 80% of
opioid-dependent individuals have tried to give up, only about 35% have
received any help," it says.
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