LESS EXPOSED OPIATE ABUSE ALARMING: EXPERTS

JAKARTA (JP): The abuse of opiates, including morphine and heroin, is
alarming in the country given its low exposure but more addictive
nature compared to other commonly used drugs.

Psychiatrist R. Budiman from the medical school of the University of
Indonesia said on Friday that of 200 patients treated for drug abuse
at Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) every month, 95 percent
used opiates.

He was addressing a news conference on upcoming symposiums planned by
the school for May 13; one for the public on drug abuse and another
for medics to draw up a handbook on how to deal with addiction of opiates.

Opiates are drugs found in or stemming from a substance found in
opium, the milky juice derived from the unripe seed capsules of the
poppy plant Papaver somniferum.

"The figure (of 200 patients) is only the tip of the iceberg," Budiman
told The Jakarta Post.

Addicts who came for hospital treatment were those who were highly
under the influence of drugs, he said, adding he had no idea how many
other users there were who did not seek medical advice or treatment.
He said the abuse of opiates had even reached kampongs across the country.

"Those who use opiates such as putaw (low grade heroin) do it
discreetly at home in their private rooms, but people who use
shabu-shabu (crystal metamphetamine) do it at discotheques or other
public places," Budiman said.

Latest reports about arrested suspects of drug abuse mostly involve
users of shabu-shabu or marijuana.

Budiman said that while the abuse of all drugs was harmful, opiates
generated a higher level of addiction than the above drugs.

Compared to shabu-shabu, the cravings of opiates were impossible to
resist, he said.

He also raised misperceptions about the therapy of drug
abuse.

Addiction could only be ended by a long process which included
psychological therapy, he said, but that many believed detoxification
alone could heal addicts.

"There are many detoxification centers in the country that offer quick
solutions, including detoxification, to stop opiate addiction,"
Budiman said.

This misperception had been commercially exploited by a number of
detoxification centers, he said.

Detoxification only eradicated biological addiction, he said, while
psychic problems remained. Addicts must also be treated to overcome
disrupted family relations.

Budiman said the cost of detoxification in Indonesia could reach up to
US$7,000.

Ali said that addicts and their families "are desperate to seek help."
That was why they were willing to pay so much money, he added.

RSCM was planning to build a much cheaper rehabilitation center, which
would cost Rp 7 million to Rp 8 million per person, he said.

A standard set by the World Health Organization stipulates that three
consecutive years is needed to confirm a person is clean from drug
abuse. (08)