Overdose Medication urgently required at rehab centre in Manipur?
By Rajesh Khongbantabam *
We live in a society full of contrasting and contradictory schools of thought with some organizations opting for abstinence-oriented services for drug users and others vociferously advocating pragmatic substitution programs.
Both try to save and improve the quality of people's lives within the constraints of this paradoxical society. Communities of drug users shy away from getting entangled in this debate. They are far more interested in the results of their treatment.
But when a certain drug user who I cannot name enrolled in an abstinence-oriented rehabilitation program he found anything but the happy ending he expected. Despite the determination he showed to get 'clean' he ironically died of a drug overdose in the same clinic.
I have no intention of publishing the drug user's name or the name of the clinic he was attending. I simply felt the responsibility to publicize the details of his premature death to illustrate how lives can be saved.
If, and only if, wisdom and reason prevailed over utopian and moralistic intentions these situations might be avoidable. Isn't it time we accept the ostensible fact that pragmatic services are a realistic and responsible approach to drug rehabilitation?
We admit we are powerless to control our addictions and turn our situation over to a government-sponsored institution. Are these clinics honest enough to admit that they are powerless to change things destined to happen? There are currently acute shortages of the drug "Lobain" which is used exclusively for rehabilitation purposes.
One of my past articles titled 'Rehab centres boom as drug users feel the heat' has received a lot of flak for being too critical but I am committed to continue writing until the people with the power to change this started to listen.
How many drug users have to be sacrificed before we address this crucial issue? The plight of affected parents and families are unimaginable. At least some rehabilitation centres have the courage to admit this fact.
Kudos to them!
Saving lives is our utmost priority, getting 'clean and straight' can come later.
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* Rajesh khongbantabam is a key correspondent of HDN (Health & Development Network, Thailand) and writes about AIDS inflicted and help available for them. He is based at Imphal, Manipur.
This article was webcasted at e-pao.net on 02nd September 2009.
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