Drug Replacement Therapy Is A Success, Says Health D-G

PETALING JAYA, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- Drug Replacement Therapy (DRT) for the hardcore drug addicts is a success, with 84 per cent retention rate from more than 1,200 drug addicts who had undergone a pilot project under the `Harm Reduction Programme'.
Health Ministry Director-General Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said out of that, 71.5 per cent had been gainfully employed and were now back into society.
"That was just a pilot project we started in 2005 for six months and we found that the retention rate was 84 per cent, which we considered as successful, and in some areas, 100 per cent," he told reporters here Saturday.
A 70 per cent retention rate is considered successful according to the World Health Organisation, said Dr Ismail after opening the 3rd National Conference on Addiction Medicine.
Encouraged by that, he said the government was now ready to go for the second phase and targeted to rope in 5,000 hardcore drug addicts for 2007, 10,000 for 2008 and 2009 respectively and 15,000 by 2010.
"In phase two, more hospitals, more clinics, more private sectors will be involved and more doctors will be engaged," he said.
The pilot project involved eight hospitals, two government clinics and eight private clinics.
Under the DRT, hardcore addicts especially the intravenous drug users are given methadone -a substitute drug, to help reduce their addiction. The methadone is taken orally under supervision of a doctor at the clinic who handles the drug rehabilitation programme.
When introduced by the government last year, several parties had caused an uproar as they were concerned that the programme might back-fire.
Dr Ismail said the government felt the bold move would help curb the drug problem in the country before it escalated into a bigger problem including the increase in HIV/AIDS infection among drug abusers.