Residential Rehab Only Helpful in the Short Term for Meth Users, Study Finds

By Join Together Staff | August 2, 2012 | 2 Comments | Filed in Drugs,Research & Treatment


Community-based residential rehabilitation programs are only helpful in the short term for methamphetamine users, a new study suggests. Shorter detoxification programs are even less successful, Reutersreports.

While about half of the study participants were able to stop using meth after they joined a residential rehabilitation program, most had gone back to using the drug after three years, the study found.

Few addiction treatment programs are designed specifically for methamphetamine users, according to lead researcher Rebecca McKetin of the Australian National University. Instead, people often go through programs meant for people using heroin or alcohol.

She compared long-term methamphetamine use in 248 people in a rehab program, and 112 in a detox program, with 101 meth users who were not in treatment. People in residential rehab generally live for several months at a treatment center that offers counseling, as well as social and recreational activities. People enrolled in a detox program usually spend a few days at a hospital or other medical facility.

After three months, 48 percent of those who went through rehab remained abstinent, compared with 15 percent of those who went through detox or who did not receive any treatment.

At one year, 20 percent of meth users who went through rehab were still not using the drug, compared with 7 percent of people in the other two groups. By three years, only 12 percent of those who went through rehab still were not using meth, compared with 5 percent of the others.

The study is published in the journal Addiction.

HEROES IN RECOVERY

About
Challenging the stigma associated with the word addiction - because every person who takes a step towards change is a hero.
Description
Foundations Recovery Network (FRN) has ignited a grassroots movement called “Heroes in Recovery” to celebrate the heroic efforts of individuals, families, healthcare professionals and institutions in fostering a society where people can seek the help they need without feeling ashamed or isolated. It intends to remove the social stigma associated with people who are “in recovery,” to recognize the
heroic effort it takes to overcome the obstacles in seeking help, and to celebrate the act of preventing the past from kidnapping the future. While the movement initially focuses on persons recovering from addictive behavior, it is meant also to recognize heroes recovering from many other types of disorders and trauma that can feed or manifest from an addiction.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 20 million people needed substance abuse treatment last year and did not receive it. 10 million Americans did not receive needed mental health care. The stigma associated with substance abuse and mental health disorders creates a significant barrier to individuals and families seeking help.

It’s important for the public to understand, embrace, and encourage people who are finding a way to thrive within their own circumstances and live the lives that they desire and deserve.



Contact Info
Email heroesinrecovery@gmail.com
Website http://www.heroesinrecovery.com


History by Year
2011
Heroes in Recovery Inaugural 6K Run/Walk

Cumberland Heights TN

About
Cumberland Heights is a nationally recognized alcohol and drug treatment center located west of Nashville on the Cumberland River, offering in-patient and out-patient services for individuals as well as programs for family members.



8283 River Road Pike
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
Always open

Phone 1 (800) 646-9998
Website http://www.cumberlandheights.org

Austin Recovery Addiction Rehab

About
Austin Recovery Addiction Rehab provides effective, affordable & compassionate residential treatment. Our programs include Short-term & Extended treatment & Family House in addition to Detox, Outpatient, Aftercare and Alumni.
Description
Since 1967, Austin Recovery has provided effective, compassionate, and affordable drug and alcohol treatment for individuals, families and communities. Our transformational treatment model incorporates a broad range of techniques including individual and small group counseling with licensed clinicians, experiential therapies, 12 step work, and a comprehensive evidence-based curriculum.

Our trea...See More
General Information
Full Medical Detox
Adult Men's and Women's 30- and 90-day Residential Programs
Family House Program (Women with Children)
Intensive and Supportive Outpatient
Aftercare

Alumni
Co-occuring Disorders
Nicotine Replacement Therapy
Self-pay, Insurance, and Public-funding Options



8402 Cross Park Drive
Austin, Texas 78754


Phone 1 (512) 697-8600
Website http://www.AustinRecovery.org

Mixing Energy Drinks With Alcohol Can Lead to Risky Sex for College Students

By Join Together Staff | August 3, 2012 | Leave a comment | Filed in Alcohol,Research, Young Adults & Youth

Combining caffeinated energy drinks with alcohol can lead to risky sex for college students, new research suggests.

The study of 648 students, published in the Journal of Caffeine Research, found 29 percent of sexually active participants said they had alcohol mixed with energy drinks in the past month. During their most recent sexual encounter, about 45 percent had a casual partner, 44 percent said they did not use a condom, and 25 said they were drunk, according to HealthDay.

Those who said they drank alcohol mixed with energy drinks were more likely to have casual sex and/or to be intoxicated during their most recent sexual encounter, the study found. Consuming alcohol and energy drinks did not affect the rate at which students used a condom during their most recent sexual encounter.

Lead researcher Kathleen E. Miller of the University of Buffalo said the findings suggest alcohol and energy drink mixes may play a role in the “hook-up culture” on many campuses.

“Mixing energy drinks with alcohol can lead to unintentional overdrinking, because the caffeine makes it harder to assess your own level of intoxication,” Miller said in a university news release. She added that energy drinks mixed with alcohol “have stronger priming effects than alcohol alone. In other words, they increase the craving for another drink, so that you end up drinking more overall.”

Lessons From Maine’s Fight Against Limits on Addiction Treatment

By Celia Vimont | August 3, 2012 | 4 Comments | Filed in Addiction,Government, Insurance, Prescription Drugs & Treatment


Maine’s decision to retroactively limit Medicaid payments for buprenorphine to treat opiate addiction is likely to have disastrous consequences, warns the President of the Northern New England Society of Addiction Medicine.

As state budgets continue to tighten, more states are likely to take Maine’s lead, says Mark Publicker, MD. In some states, buprenorphine (Suboxone) and other opiate agonists may not be covered for addiction treatment, while other states are imposing prescribing and refill limits, says Publicker, who is also Medical Director of Mercy Recovery Center in Portland. He is calling on addiction treatment professionals to lead the battle to maintain the availability of medical treatment for addiction.

At the recent American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) annual meeting, Dr. Publicker spoke about the new Medicaid limits on buprenorphine in Maine. He noted patients face a cutoff in medication after a maximum of two years of treatment. The limitations are retroactive, meaning patients on long-term therapy will be hit first and hardest, he said.

“The intent of the new limitations is to save money, but legislators had no concern about the fiscal consequences of such a move, such as increases in crime rates, illnesses, child neglect and an increased number of premature births, which are all anticipated to be far more costly than medications,” he says.

Targeting addiction treatment for budget cuts is an easy move for legislators, he adds. “Addiction is a highly stigmatized condition, and there is no grassroots organization that will rise up to oppose treatment limitations. There is a fundamental misunderstanding about addiction as a chronic disease, and the role of medication in maintenance management.”

Dr. Publicker and colleagues, with the help of ASAM and a number of other medical groups, lobbied against the limits in Maine, but were only able to get a one-year delay in the implementation of the retroactive limit.

“The impact will be disastrous,” he states. “Many of my patients have been on buprenorphine for more than two years, and are leading successful, healthy lives. Many, if not most, of my patients who have achieved sobriety on buprenorphine will go into withdrawal, and the relapse rate will be extremely high. My patients’ lives are at stake.”

In Maine, which is largely rural and poor, opiate addiction is endemic, according to Dr. Publicker. “In many areas, there are no alternatives to medication-assisted treatment. This is a treatment that primary care providers can offer in their offices.”

ASAM is developing a state-by-state survey about the status of buprenorphine limitations, Dr. Publicker notes. At the annual meeting, he urged his colleagues around the country to take action against legislative attempts to cut funding for medication-assisted treatment for addiction.

“The fight against limitations requires coalitions,” he says. “It requires a comprehensive approach involving organizational support and cooperation, effective lobbying, developing personal relationships with legislators and the executive branch, and public information involving the media. It is important to make the clinical case and the economic case against limitations. It is just as important to take this issue to the public, to enlist patients, patients’ families, and other advocacy organizations to join in the fight.”