Methadone clinics are specially licensed and accredited institutions that have been permitted to administer methadone in a form of treatment frequently called Methadone Maintenance Treatment, or MMT. Although methadone can be used for a variety of purposes, these clinics administer the drug in an effort to ease the period of withdrawal in opiate addicts. These clinics help the addict and the community as a whole.
Opiate Addiction
All opiates, including methadone, originate from the Asian poppy plant. When opiates are introduced into the body, they cause certain chemicals to bind to opiate receptors in the brain, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the CDC. Addiction to opiates develops over time and is caused by the brain becoming used to, and even craving, chemicals binding to the receptors in the brain. When addicts suddenly stop using the drug, they frequently experience extremely uncomfortable side effects, including craving for more opiates, nausea, vomiting, anxiety, stress, agitation, muscle cramps, diarrhea, insomnia and other conditions, says Drugs.com.
Methadone Maintenance Treatment
The symptoms of opiate withdrawal are often so potent that they drive addicts attempting withdrawal to relapse into drug abuse once more. The average opiate addict will attempt to quit the illicit use of these substances 10 to 25 times during his life, say Addiction Search. According to the CDC, when methadone is used in maintenance treatment, it behaves much like drugs such as heroin. Methadone binds to the brain's opiate receptors, consequently reducing the craving for more opiates that addicts in withdrawal frequently experience. However, methadone treatment is not merely substituting one addiction for another. The CDC says that when administered correctly, methadone causes none of the euphoric, dulling or other negative effects associated with opiate abuse. The reduction in these symptoms helps an addict to reduce the amount and frequency of self-injurious and erratic behavior, thus making withdrawal easier.
Helping Addicts Withdraw from Opiates
The most prominent purpose of all methadone clinics is to provide treatment to opioid addicts that will ease the symptoms of their withdrawal and help them stop illicit consumption of these substances. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, methadone is a well-tested, relatively safe and extremely effective option in opiate withdrawal treatment. According to the CDC, the proper use of methadone results in decreased severity of symptoms of withdrawal and increased sobriety and is excreted slowly, making once-daily treatment possible. All of these properties of methadone make it extremely effective in reducing the amount of illicit opioid use. The Addiction Treatment Forum lists five studies that found that the use of methadone can reduce opioid abuse by up to 80 percent in patients undergoing MMT.
Helping Opiate Addicts Re-Enter Society
In 2001, oversight of MMT shifted from the Food and Drug Administration to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, or CSAT. Since then, methadone clinics have also served the purpose of further helping addicts. Now, MMT does not simply aid withdrawal so that former addicts can be reinstated into society. The change in administration improved the quality and access to MMT and allowed for increased discretion among doctors and patients and more individual-based treatment plans, says the CDC. This move made MMT closer to becoming a part of regular health care and fundamentally enhanced patient rights and responsibilities. The CDC even reports that this change has made self-administration possible among patients who are more stable. These are among small steps MMT has taken from simply treating a problem to trying to resolve it.
Advancing the Good of the Community
Methadone clinics are also set up as a form of social welfare. Helping people addicted to opiates saves money and decreases crimes and death, says the Addiction Treatment Forum. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the cost of MMT for a single addict is $13 per day. The agency also states that the cost/benefit ratio of MMT is 4 to 1. This means that for every $1 the community spends on the treatment, $4 are saved as future treatment costs. Other sources, like the Addiction Treatment Forum, report this number to be as high as 7 to 1. The Addiction Treatment Forum also states that communities with no open methadone clinics have higher crime rates and pay up to 17 percent more for the justice system, welfare projects and crime in general.
