Social and psychological functioning of opiate dependent patients in methadone maintenance treatment – longitudinal research report

Abstract

IntroductionSubstitution treatment is recommended by the WHO as an effective form of curbing and abstaining from opiate use and improvement of psychosocial functioning of drug addicted persons. It was positively demonstrated that this treatment leads to abstinence from illegal drugs and reduction of harm of use. However, despite the long-term application of this form of treatment, and despite various studies on changes occurring under its influence, still little is known about what changes occur in patients participating in substitution treatment. For this reason, the aim of the present research analysis was to determine what changes appeared in cognitive emotion regulation strategies, sense of coherence, intensity of psychopathological symptoms and level of developmental task completion in the patient group. MethodThe longitudinal study procedure was applied. Opiate addicts were studied twice – first when on starting therapy and second after six months of participation. The research was conducted at five substitution treatment centres in Poland. The first research stage included 37 subjects addicted to opiates, and the second 22 persons after 6 months of substitution treatment. ResultsAfter six months of methadone treatment, patients displayed a statistically significant change in sense of coherence. The respondents believed life to be more understandable, predictable and meaningful. A significant increase in the realisation of all developmental tasks was also observed, but not of specific tasks. There were no significant changes in cognitive emotional regulation strategies and intensity of psychopathological symptoms.