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The Perception of Various Physician Specialists on Addiction Treatment Velga SudrabaMethods in Latvia

Velga Sudraba

Introduction: Many different addiction treatment methods are available in Latvia such as: Evidence-based Psychosocial Interventions (common elsewhere in the world), Opioid Substitution Therapy, and methods popular in the Soviet times (which are not evidence-based). These latter Soviet methods demonstrate the doctor’s denial of addiction as an illness and promote “magical thinking” in patients.

Aim: of this study was to research the knowledge of various physician specialists on available addiction treatment methods in Latvia and how these methods have been promoted and practiced.

Material and methods: A survey developed by the author was used in this study. There were 586 various physician specialists surveyed; their mean age was 46.8 ± 10.8 years. Female were 78% of the respondents.

Results: The methods that the doctors were most informed about were Detoxification (96.8%), the Suggestion method without medication intake (86.3%) and the Minnesota program (83.6%). Most often, the doctors suggested the Minnesota program (60.4%) and Detoxification (60.2%) to their patients. A third of the respondents (30.7%) practiced detoxification.

Conclusion: The physicians questioned were best informed on acute addiction treatment. Nevertheless, when referring to the bio-psycho-social addiction model, the doctor’s knowledge on evidence-based treatment methods for addiction still needed improvement.