..The Daily Express..
..A 130 Million increase in spending on junkies has seen just 70 extra addicts kick their habit - A cost of 1.8 million per person..Overall the National Treatment Agency spends the equivalent of 66,000 on drug services for every addict who succesfully quits..The figures comes less than 2 weeks after the NTA took flak over some clinics bribing crack and heroin addicts with extra methadone or shopping vouchers to stay clean..Last night the conservatives called on the commons public accounts committee to probe the massive failed expenditure..Shadow home secretary David Davis said " This is yet more evidence why we should focus spending on getting addicts off drugs, not just spend money managing their addictions "..Spending on drug services increased from 253 million in 2004/5 to 384 million last year, an increase of 130 million, according to NTA figures..During that period the number of people leaving treatment drug-free each year only increased by 70 from 5,759 to 5,829..
it means around a 1.8m increase in funding for every extra addict still drug-free..A department of health spokeswomen said " it generally takes 5 - 7 years for an addict to complete treatment successfully, it would be unrealistic to expect to see the results of this expansion in treatment at once "..Robbie..
..i think the doctors shud take note of this aswell..as i was saying to sumone in the week..its to easy for doctors to throw scripts at addicts and tell them to come back in 2 weeks for a refill..as for the bribery part..how does that help an addict to get off methadone if they're bribing them with MORE to methadone to stay off heroin ?..all the addict has to do over ere is to tell their keyworker that the amount they're on isn'nt enough to keep them off the gear..and more than likely they're get a top on on their usual dose ?..they all just walking in circles blinded by the sun if ya know wot i mean..Robbie..
I certainly inderstand your point as well as your frusteration--i too see people way way overmedicated especially when it comes to mixing benzo's with methadone--thats nonsense. But I am glad to see they are spending more $ on addiction services rather than spending it on the police force to thro the "low life junkies" in jail. there are a large percentage of people who abuse the system and there always will be--thats sad and yes it angers those of us in need who are trying for real.I am sure that $ will do good to--programs for housing and children and transprtation and dental assistace ect.. I'm sure the offering of more methadone to stay clean was a isolated incident. and as far as shopping vouchers--i think thats not so bad--why not help a recovering addict with clothing for job-hunting, or furniture for their new apartmen(if they are staying clean) I wish i could get more help sometimes, I almost feel like I have to "manipulate" in order to get the help I really am in need of and will actually utilize for the right things. anyway--i see and understand both sides--the good witht the bad.....--great topic robbie
..Amity..
..just wanna add also concerning the shopping vouchers..they give addicts 20-30 worth of them..i think more for food like tesco/sainsburys and maybe marks and spencers vouchers..but i know of some addicts who still use gear while on methadone, not all i assume..do trade the vouchers for a bag of gear..so it can also be detrimental in that way..but for the ones who use the vouchers in the way they're given..it sure does help them put food in the cupboard or clothes on their back..Robbie..
..just wanna add also concerning the shopping vouchers..they give addicts 20-30 worth of them..i think more for food like tesco/sainsburys and maybe marks and spencers vouchers..but i know of some addicts who still use gear while on methadone, not all i assume..do trade the vouchers for a bag of gear..so it can also be detrimental in that way..but for the ones who use the vouchers in the way they're given..it sure does help them put food in the cupboard or clothes on their back..Robbie..
You are always going to have people who do the wrong things with the right services. PERSONALLY I think the % of addicts that programs help is way less then the % of addicts who just quit without meetings/programs. Yeah it's being spent and that's a good thing.......not to sound crass, the 5% it helps is
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AWSOME!!!
'''''''''''''' The problems are so big i don't have the answers.. all the money support in the world won't help a addict who dose not WANT TO BE CLEAN
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AWSOME!!!
'''''''''''''' The problems are so big i don't have the answers.. all the money support in the world won't help a addict who dose not WANT TO BE CLEAN
Robbie,
This is way complicated we know that and stats and surveys and figures can't deal with that so they simplify it but really it's a big messy story.
There are addicts outside the system who come off and never make the stats and this money only a fraction is used for treatment because methadone isn't treatment and most of the rest is being misused because people don't know what the hell to do.
Here we have huge waiting lists for detox centres and you can wait months to get a script and then trying to get them to change a script once it's wriiten in stone takes more months. It's a huge leap for an addict to make to really decide to quit and then they have to jump through hoops and keep jumping through hoops and some get tired of jumping or do it their own way or die first.
My guy's getting there baby steps stumbling sometimes but doing it on his own and slowly so very slowly it's getting better. Maybe that's the only way it really can be.
Love to you all
k
x
This is way complicated we know that and stats and surveys and figures can't deal with that so they simplify it but really it's a big messy story.
There are addicts outside the system who come off and never make the stats and this money only a fraction is used for treatment because methadone isn't treatment and most of the rest is being misused because people don't know what the hell to do.
Here we have huge waiting lists for detox centres and you can wait months to get a script and then trying to get them to change a script once it's wriiten in stone takes more months. It's a huge leap for an addict to make to really decide to quit and then they have to jump through hoops and keep jumping through hoops and some get tired of jumping or do it their own way or die first.
My guy's getting there baby steps stumbling sometimes but doing it on his own and slowly so very slowly it's getting better. Maybe that's the only way it really can be.
Love to you all
k
x
I would disagree that "QUOTE"," methadone isn't treatment". It was the ONLY treatment that got me to stop shooting up. I had tried rehab many times before. THE ONLY lasting recovery i have had was thru the methadone clinic. I'm not on it now but, yes it was treatment and it worked for me without the meetings, without group rehab thearpy. Methadone is recovery. just my personal thought on that. Yeah it has it's drawbacks but, it is a good treatment it is safe it dose help. If it keeps one addict from banging up it works.
