101577: Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Addiction

About the Course:

The most effective treatment for people addicted to opioids is “substitution therapy” in which patients are given a safer opioid medication that helps prevent withdrawal and relapse to drug abuse. Methadone maintenance therapy has long been viewed as the gold standard for substitution therapy. However, due to concerns about abuse and overdose, methadone treatment for opioid addiction is limited to specially licensed programs that usually require daily visits from patients. Buprenorphine is a newly approved medication that is an effective alternative to methadone. Because it is safer and less susceptible to abuse, federal legislation has permitted buprenorphine treatment to be delivered by qualified physicians in their offices, in addition to specialty treatment programs. This publication discusses issues related to buprenorphine treatment for opioid addiction.

This course is from our series “Substance Abuse and Societal Issues”. The series is based on Knowledge Assets, published by the Substance Abuse Policy Research Program.

Our other courses in the series include:

101568-Alcohol Retail Policy

101569-DUI Policy

101564-Increasing the Use of Smoking Cessation Treatments

101570-Substance Abuse and Welfare Reform

101563-Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Substance Abuse Treatment

101574-Syringe Access Interventions

101575-Minimum Legal Drinking Age Policy

101577-Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Addiction

101576-Drug Treatment for Drug Abusing Criminal Offenders

Publication Date:

March 2009

Author

Robin E. Clark, Ph.D., and Jeffrey D. Baxter, M.D.

About the Author:

The authors are associated with the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Recommended For:

This course is recommended for health care professionals, especially addiction counselors, psychologists, mental health counselors, social workers, and nurses who seek knowledge about buprenorphine treatment for opioid addiction. It is appropriate for all levels of participants’ knowledge.

Course Objectives:

1. Identify barriers and impediments to the wider use of buprenorphine treatment for opioid addiction.

2. Describe the safety and effectiveness of buprenorphine treatment, access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction, and factors related to treatment retention and reduction of illicit drug use.

3. Discuss the benefits of providing buprenorphine treatment through physician offices, cost effectiveness, limitations to treatment expansion, and rate of illegal diversion of buprenorphine tablets.