Improving Healthcare for Recovering Addicts
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If addiction hasn’t touched your life or the lives of those you love the most, you might be in the minority. While our healthcare system is one of the most advanced in the modern world, many believe that it fails the estimated 100 people who die every day from drug overdose.
Addiction doesn’t discriminate. It will rob this world of a 19-year-old college student as quickly as it will take the life of an 80-year-old man. It enters the homes of white, black, and Hispanic families, along with people of other nationalities who call this country home. The rich and poor can get hooked on Heroin and prescription opioids, cocaine, or other substances in equal numbers.
However, if you were to study rehab facilities, the addiction treatment class divide would be palpable. Treatment options range from inpatient to outpatient and from government funded to private and posh facilities. The disparities might have you wondering if one life is somehow worth more than another. This leaves many searching for new ways healthcare can improve treatment for those struggling.
The Struggle of Addiction
Addiction was once considered a disease of personal choice or weakness. However, the medical and science communities have long discounted this theory. Today, it’s commonly accepted that addiction is a chronic disease of the brain that alters the reward system in those who suffer from the condition. Addicts will use to achieve a “high,” regardless of consequences. They are unable to stay away from the drug of choice or stop the behaviors. They lack control, emotional response, and the understanding that their addiction and actions are causing others around them problems.
Addiction recovery is no walk in the park. However, it’s critical to note that addiction is a treatable disease. Full recovery takes time and commitment. It’s estimated that substance abuse costs the U.S. more than $740 billion each year related to lost work, crime, and health care. So how can the medical industry improve care for those addicted?
Understanding the Role of the Provider
The opioid epidemic began when physicians prescribed medications to individuals who may have been better suited to non-pharmacologic pain-management methods or drugs without the side effect of addiction. After years of too many narcotics being prescribed, our country took one look at the opioid crisis and wondered how we got here. Today, ethical prescribing laws have swept across the nation to decrease the numbers of those who struggle with or even die from addiction.
Treatment centers have recognized the specialized care required to help those attempting to stop using substances. They approach care in a holistic manner that uses addiction specialists, nurses, counselors, and therapists who specialize in this distinct area of medicine. These professionals have a thorough understanding of prevention strategies, evaluation of needs, diagnostic techniques, and treatment methods for the best chance at long-term recovery.
Finding New Pain Treatments
Everyone has pain at some point in their life that will require more than an over-the-counter analgesic. Each time a provider writes a prescription for this classification of drugs the risk of addiction to opioids is possible. The dangers of these drugs combined with the cost of recovery and the staggering death rates have researchers looking for new treatments for pain relief.
Apolipoprotein A-I binding protein (AIBP) is a new drug that was introduced to the Food and Drug Administration in 2018 that has been called the “opioid of the future.” It’s given in an injection and blocks the root cause of pain, not merely changing the way the brain perceives pain signals. While this medication is still in its experimental phase and could be years away from human treatment, it is moving us one step closer to safer pain-management regimens.
Cost of Recovery
Those who suffer from addiction are often faced with hefty treatment bills. Addiction treatment can cost thousands of dollars, depending on the treatment option chosen or needed. Not all options are covered by insurance companies, which means that those with more financial means likely have more access to care.
The treatment gap is significant and trying to narrow it will require the costs of treatment to be covered by insurance policies. Until this time, screening and intervention efforts must be increased in primary care settings to find those with drug misuse and abuse problems before more serious issues develop. This also gives providers the ability to connect people with appropriate treatment providers in the early phase of addiction.
Novel Ideas
The U.S. has historically approached addiction issues in the same manner. The government passes and enforces laws, and education campaigns ramp up during the height of crises to decrease continued use. New treatment methodologies surface. However, historically, we haven’t embraced all strategies that seem to work in other countries. One such treatment approach is safe injection sites.
Supervised injection facilities provide users with sterile syringes to administer drugs they have in their possession under the supervision of medical personnel. These facilities are supportive and have been proven to lead individuals out of addiction. If an overdose occurs, the medical staff is available to administer the needed anecdote and supportive care. While these programs have existed in Canada and Europe for several years, they haven’t been embraced as quickly here in the U.S.
Research has shown that safe injection sites reduce the spread of contagious diseases such as Hepatitis, HIV, and bacterial infections. They also reduce crime and other dangerous behaviors that are often common to those who use illegal drugs. Safe injection sites might also be the answer to substantial treatment costs and the high rate of deaths associated with overdose.
As we, as a nation, continue to shed more light on the severe consequences of drug addiction, our healthcare system must rise to meet the needs of those who need help. No one person is more likely to struggle with addiction than another. We must continue to look for ways to improve treatment options if saving lives is the ultimate goal.
