Question Period Note: Gerneral Lines on Prescribed Alternatives

N/A

• The debate regarding using prescription drugs as an alternative to deadly illegal drugs has been characterized as being highly experimental, novel, and entirely without precedence or base of evidence.
• In fact, the practice of substituting illegal drugs with certain forms of prescription drugs in the context of a therapeutic relationship is not at all new.
• It is a practice in addiction medicine and first-line treatment for opioid addiction that has existed for decades in several countries, with positive results, significant published research, and established safeguards and protocols for certain kinds of drugs, such as methadone, buprenorphine, and injectable forms of prescription opioids.
• What is new is the current North American context of having a supply of highly potent, deadly synthetic drugs.
• In response, some health professionals have adapted by using a wider range of drugs and models to stabilize and save lives of their patients.
• Prescribed alternatives programs are being studied by a number of researchers across Canada. We will continue to evaluate all available and emerging evidence to improve practice and further build the evidence base.

N/a

N/a