Methadone Clinic Sought

Drug Users Now Have to Go to Sarnia for Treatment

Coun. Marjorie Crew wants a methadone clinic opened in
Chatham-Kent.

"I've received calls from many people about the need for a methadone
clinic," says Crew, a member of the Chatham-Kent Public Health Board.

"In the last two weeks, I've received three calls from people who are
battling addiction. They've approached me about the need for a program
for themselves and their families," she told health board members at
their June 27 meeting.

As it is now, Chatham-Kent residents go to Sarnia for their methadone
treatments.

"This is one more barrier for people who are trying to get clean,"
said Crew.

Ontario Works pays for about 25 of its clients to go to the clinics.
Other people have to find their own way.

Anne Coulter, director of public health, said urine samples are needed
as part of the program are dropped off at the Chatham-Kent health unit
then shipped off to Sarnia.

To get a clinic such as the one in Sarnia or Windsor, would require
physicians willing to oversee a program, and willing to have the
special training needed.

Coulter said the health unit is discussing the issue with
representatives in Sarnia and Windsor, with a view to possibly having
their personnel come to Chatham to conduct the urine tests.

An estimated 20 to 30 samples have been dropped off each week over the
last three to four years. The number has increased over the last three
years.

Lucy Brown, general manager of health services, said some local
physicians have been approached, but none so far have shown interest.

Dr. Del Donald, one of three owners of the Bluewater Methadone Clinic
in Sarnia, tells Chatham This Week that his clinic has been operating
at Christina St. and Wellington St., since October 2004.

The physicians see about 300 people for intensive treatment over a
week.

"Most people are self-referrals who know they have a problem," Donald
said.

"With opiate addicts, there's no doubt they have an
addiction."

Oxycontin is a drug often prescribed for pain, and it has become an
addictive drug for many of the people seen at the Sarnia clinic.

Some of the patients, who are seen twice a week for treatment, also
start taking drugs at work or use them recreationally.

The methadone is used to help wean the clients from the
opiates.

There are people who have developed addictions after taking
medications for anxiety or depression.

Donald added that "some people just like to take drugs."

And, he said the only common denominator among the patients is that
"they all get hooked.

"They could be the kid next door."

Donald and his partners are emergency room physicians, and they still
spend part of their time in emergency at Sarnia hospitals.

It was that experience that led Donald and his partners to get a
licence to operate a methadone clinic.

Falling through the cracks

"I was chief of emergency and I was always aware of people falling
through the cracks. People would come in looking for drugs, because
they couldn't afford them on the street."

Donald said that any physician could take the year-long training to
get accredited and regulated by the Ontario College of Physicians and
Surgeons.

When residents from the University of Toronto or the University of
Western Ontario spend time in the emergency room at Sarnia, Donald
said he offers them the chance to spend a day at the methadone clinic.

"They are always eager."

Donald added that there is "quite a bit of ignorance among physicians"
about the methadone programs and patients.

"One of the rewards of doing this work, is seeing people turn their
lives around. People have told us that we saved their lives."