Prevalence of Participation in Methadone Programs
MARVIN E. PERKINS M.D.1, and
ALEX RICHMAN M.D.2
1 Director, Westchester Community Mental Health Services, White Plains, N.Y. 10601
2 Associate Director (Utilization and Review Activities), Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Medical Center, and Professor of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine of the City University of New York, New York, N.Y.
The authors' study of the two-year prevalence of participation during five successive years in a particular methadone maintenance system disclosed no evidence of worsening of results for first admissions as time went on. Although the admission criteria differed somewhat, the rate of retention after ambulatory induction was higher than that for inpatient induction. The authors point out the need for a statistical index that considers retention of patients in any treatment facility rather than only in one particular program or modality of treatment.
