From Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Weekly: In September, when Tennessee-based Acadia Healthcare Company paid $90 million for Timberline Knolls, a 122-bed inpatient treatment program in Chicago, treatment providers wondered if their programs were worth that kind of money, bed for bed. Other deals in recent months, including Foundations Recovery Network’s acquisition in early October by … Continue reading Treatment is big money
Category: Controversies
Another Reaction to Hazelden’s Adoption of Suboxone
Mark Willenbring, a former Director of the Treatment and Recovery Research Division of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism/National Institutes of Health weighs in on Hazelden's embrace of Suboxone Hazelden's new approach is a seismic shift that is likely to move the entire industry in this direction. I told Marv that it was like … Continue reading Another Reaction to Hazelden’s Adoption of Suboxone
NAATP launches counteroffensive to medication push
This is very welcome news: Frustrated that medication-assisted treatment is coming across as the addiction field’s standard of care simply because drug company studies are dominating the research landscape, a group of some of the most prominent leaders in treatment administration is vowing to fight back. These leaders have enlisted the help of another heavy … Continue reading NAATP launches counteroffensive to medication push
Hazelden to start opioid maintenance
This has gotten a lot of attention [emphasis mine]: ...for the first time, Hazelden will begin providing medication-assisted treatment for people hooked on heroin or opioid painkillers, starting at its Center City, Minnesota facility and expanding across its treatment network in five states in 2013. This so-called maintenance therapy differs from simply detoxifying addicts until … Continue reading Hazelden to start opioid maintenance
Pot barons?
On the business interests involved in the push to legalize marijuana in Colorado. He’s not just blowing smoke when he talks about selling out to the highest bidder. It’s already widely rumored that Philip Morris has leased warehouse space in the area. The company denies it, as do its top-tier competitors, but “I’ve heard a … Continue reading Pot barons?
Correlation does not equal causation
On the oft used phrase, "correlation does not equal causation": The correlation phrase has become so common and so irritating that a minor backlash has now ensued against the rhetoric if not the concept. No, correlation does not imply causation, but it sure as hell provides a hint. Related articles Correlation, Causation and Internet Comments (boingboing.net) The History … Continue reading Correlation does not equal causation
Beware of misleading headlines
A new article discussing the expanding use of medications in addiction treatment has the following sub heading: Experts are pushing for a truly medical approach to treating addiction as a disease rather than relying solely on longtime unproven therapies like 12-step programs. Unproven? Twelve Step Facilitation (TSF) is the treatment of choice for addicted physicians and they … Continue reading Beware of misleading headlines
They’ve got hope for something. But, what?
Stimulant maintenance therapy did not work 😦 This study did not find a significant main effect of modafinil on the rate or duration of cocaine use among cocaine-dependent patients. Now they decide to polish the turd: Although these results are disappointing, we did find that modafinil-treated patients had nonsignificantly higher odds of attaining abstinence across … Continue reading They’ve got hope for something. But, what?
Methadone and employment
These findings were characterized as "counterintuitive". Findings from multivariate analyses initially showed no association between treatment enrollment and employment transitions. However, when a distinction was made between MMT and other addiction treatment modalities, it became clear that the relationship between addiction treatment and employment outcomes for IDU in this setting was contingent upon the type … Continue reading Methadone and employment
A brain disease AND (fill in the blank)
Not addiction related, but a very interesting look at new directions for treating and understanding schizophrenia. The article opens by reflecting on where we stand with our attempts to understand the causes: ...the outcome of two decades of serious psychiatric science is that schizophrenia now appears to be a complex outcome … Continue reading A brain disease AND (fill in the blank)
Recovery Review 