Opiate Maintenance in Australia: Difference Between States

[Erikmen]

^ That seems harsh and it must be quite frustrating.

By minimum, it suggests that it will be more uncomfortable for you but enough for anyone else. Sorry to jump in like that but it seems like a punishment to me. I think everyone should be treated accordingly when it comes to pain management. Giving the minimum amount rather than enough, or whatever it may take so that you can be fine when the time comes, instead of almost fine - so to speak.

 

[JessFR]

I've been on two methadone programs in Sydney. One private one public.

On the subject of seperate appointments, it might be unrelated but I know here they often intentionally seperate couples for assessment because they ask the girls additional questions about domestic violence and if your partner is pressuring you to prostitute yourself for money foR drugs etc. Once over the phone they even asked me if my boyfriend could hear us and if I could talk freely. The public one I went too had no takeaways, but the private one I go to now does if you test clean for a while.

There is no repercussion for testing positive apart from loss of takeaways.

I tested positive for heroin and sometimes benzos and ice every month without exception for 2 years.

They were willing and in fact encouraged me to have my antidepressant script written and filled there.

No problems with the patients, though the staff at the public one were a lot ruder and required on site security cause people hated them. At my new private one there's no security and people actually seem like to respect the staff. It's faster too dispite not having a ticket system. Was faster starting it too, got my first dose the same day I first went in, took days at the public one.

No experience with subs.

 

[JoeBloggs]

You are put on a register under the Poisons Act as a Drug Addict for LIFE, restricting your access to scheduled drugs. When you get off the done it will still come up on records when you go to get friggen antibiotics. God forbid you get cancer and need morphine. Apparently for your own protection so no doctor prescribes you any scheduled drugs cos it could cause a relapse / addiction.

Signing a form to go on a register (it said it was national) was mandatory for me going on methadone years ago in WA, but I was still prescribed benzos by the same doctor prescribing me methadone. I have been on and off the both the methadone and suboxone programs since then in various states and have had no trouble getting S8 or S4 drugs prescribed. Zero trouble at all. Even in hospital, I told them I used heroin and that whatever they were planning to give me for pain wasn't going to cut it. They ended up giving me IM morphine injections and oral oxycontin. Only one GP has ever checked my medical history and thats because they were prescribing me S8 drugs, and even after doing so and talking to me about it they continued prescribing to me on a regular basis providing I didn't see any other doctors which I agreed not to. They have these kinds of rules and whatnot in place but in my experience they are far from set in stone.