Methadone Maintenance Treatment: Recommendations for Enhancing Pharmacy Services 

Foreword

In Ontario, there is a growing problem with opioid addiction, and the majority of people who are using opioids are using prescription medications. Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) has been proven to be medically effective in helping to stabilize the lives of people wrestling with the difficulties associated with opioid addiction. Within the treatment team, the pharmacist is the only member to see the MMT client every day. This ongoing professional relationship can provide support to the client and contribute to the positive changes that he or she experiences through treatment. More from the Forward...

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Contents

Acknowledgments

Part I: Background

• Introduction
• About this guide
• Overview of the development process

Part II: Recommendations and discussion

• Summary of recommendations
• Interprofessional collaboration and communication
• Pharmacy environment and client perspectives
• Accessibility of MMT pharmacy services
• Pharmacist education in MMT
• Research in MMT pharmacy practice
• Conclusion: Beyond the recommendations

References

Resources

Foreword continued

This guide has been developed to offer support to the pharmacist. The dispensing of methadone is unlike any other service provided by the pharmacist and involves special systems and services. The authors make a series of recommendations on ways to encourage pharmacists to provide methadone services, to make service more respectful of and responsive to client needs, to improve the education of pharmacist students and those already practising, and to strengthen interprofessional relationships among the MMT primary care team. This document goes further to suggest ways in which decision-makers at the service and system level may enhance pharmacy services and support pharmacists in their front-line care of MMT clients.

The guide was developed as part of the CAMH OpiATE Project. That Project was funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care following the release of the report of the Methadone Maintenance Treatment Practices Task Force in the summer of 2007. The Task Force made 26 recommendations in its report, several directed specifically to CAMH. The OpiATE Project’s objectives were:

1. To develop sustainable biopsychosocial treatment models for people with opioid dependence by engaging communities to increase awareness of the benefits of treatment for opioid dependence
2. To raise awareness about issues related to opioid dependence and reduce stigma and marginalization of addiction clients
3. To expand training and professional supports, including the development of a certificate program in opioid addiction for nurses, physicians, pharmacists, case managers and counsellors.

The OpiATE Project has focused on developing resources (including this guide) to provide information for the public and support professionals who provide treatment. More information about these resources can be found on the website MethadoneSavesLives.ca.

Christine Bois
OpiATE Project Manager
CAMH, Ottawa