Posts Tagged ‘air’

AiR's CEO on CNN Thursday, October 1st at 7:30 ET

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

AiR’s founder and CEO, Andrew Wainwright, will discuss tonight’s wire story
“In 16 states, drug deaths overtake traffic fatalities.” Experts said the
startling shift reflects two opposite trends: Driving is becoming safer,
and the legal and illegal use of powerful prescription painkillers is on
the rise.

CNN’s American Morning host, John Roberts, will be talking with Andrew
about AiR’s take on why drug deaths might be on the rise ““ the CDC
points to the increase in abuse of prescription medication, something he’s
talked with CNN’s American Morning about before ““ and what can be done
about it. Why are so many people abusing Rx drugs? What can be done to stop
it.

Check local listings

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Heroin for Heroin Addicts?

Monday, September 28th, 2009

An interesting post in Time Magazine today touched on a new British trial, over the last four years, of providing free daily heroin injections as a method to wean them off the drugs. Since the results of the trial were positive (i.e. lower street drug use, lower crime rate among participates, etc.), officials are talking about making this a permanent addition of state-funded heroin clinics for the drug addicts in the U.K.

A quote from John Strang, one of the researchers with the National Addiction Centre (who helped lead the project): “It’s a less than perfect treatment, but for entrenched addicts, it gives them the first steps toward getting their life together. Some make a virtually complete recovery, but others, we get them from a bad place to a less bad place.” According to the research, those treated with heroin had better results than those treated with methadone. However, Paul Hayes, head of the National Treatment Agency, stressed in the Guardian this month that the services would be available to only a  “very small proportion” of the nearly 200,000 heroin addicts in treatment.

So, government, if this works so well, why is it only available to a very small population? Shouldn’t this be the course of treatment for everyone? Obviously not. By giving drug addicts more drugs, aren’t we simply condoning and encouraging their habit? Why not fund a comprehensive, state-funded detoxification program followed by residential treatment? And harm reduction, in the long run is, in the words of our CEO Andrew Wainwright, simply a “band-aid on a bullet wound.” With addiction being a disease, and a malady of the physical, social and spiritual, simply medicating the addict’s “need” for the drug will not create a long term solution. We need to be moving people into comprehensive treatment, not helping them sustain their addiction.

For more information on heroin addiction and getting your loved one help, please call us at 877-320-0247.

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Moment of Change Conference

Monday, September 21st, 2009

AiR is a proud Conference Sponsor and Andrew Wainwright, Paul Hamblin & James Geckler will be attending in Palm Beach, FL September 28-30, 2009.

Specific issues around interventions, disease concepts, family participation, and practical business considerations will be presented. Conference participants have the opportunity to receive continuing education credits and acquire in-depth information about the process of intervention for addiction and mental illness.

Conference Objectives
The participant will be able to:

Visit the Foundations Recovery Network website for more information on the Moment of Change conference.

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Our trip to Cape Cod

Monday, September 14th, 2009

Jim Geckler, our Executive Director and COO, attended the 2009 Cape Cod Symposium this past weekend in Cape Cod. A few interesting things caught his eye, and we thought it would be appropriate to share them! Besides having a great time enjoying the whale-watching cruise sponsored by Foundation House, Mountainside Treatment Center, Westbridge, Webster Place and McLean Hospital, Jim also had the opportunity to connect with professionals from all over the East Coast and around the country. Here are some of the interesting things he saw:

1. We were very impressed to see a new LGBT program opening at Brattleboro Retreat in Brattleboro, VT. Having a specialized program to help this group of individuals get well can only be a benefit. They also offer a program for uniformed service professionals, which can provide additional support to a population who deals with quite a bit of trauma.

2. Jim was very impressed to see Jane Mintz of Field Model Intervention and Peter Lazar of Promises Treatment Center present on the importance of aftercare in the treatment field. We were also happy to hear them speak very highly of our Recovery Assistance Program, the leading aftercare support program in the addiction field.

3. John O’Neill of Menninger Clinic in Houston gave one of our favorite presentations of the conference, talking about technology and attachment disorders. An interesting point- do Blackberry’s and Facebook make us closer? Or actually further apart? A very intriguing topic, and we can’t wait to see more research on this topic.

We look forward to continuing our work with these premier programs. For more information about Assistance In Recovery or any of the programs mentioned here, please call us at 877-320-0247.

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Turbulent Economic Times Don't Slow Expansion

Monday, August 31st, 2009

With the news today of Caron Foundation’s expansion into Dallas (an adult residential program) , we continue to see treatment centers continuing their growth process. Caron will add 40 beds in a facility outside of Dallas to their programs both in Pennsylvania and Florida. Last week, it was announced that Hazelden, one of the nation’s leading treatment centers, would be opening a new residential program in Naples, FL. With an additional 48 beds adding to their over 200 now, Hazelden will have a facility in each region, including Springbrook in Oregon, Hazelden Center For Youth And Families and Hazelden Center City in Minnesota, and the new Florida program. As we can see, during times of economic distress, there are more and more people needing, and seeking, help for their drug or alcohol problems.

In times of an economic downturn, more and more families are affected by alcoholism and drug abuse. We here at Assistance In Recovery have seen an upswing in families in crisis- and we’re here to help. Even in the economic downturn, there are many resources available via insurance and scholarships to help addicts who are in trouble. The biggest piece here is that, regardless of a family’s current economic status, there IS help available. As we’ve said before, the WORST thing a family can do is wait it out. Hoping someone gets better isn’t effective; taking action, providing resources, and being proactive is the way to get a loved one out of trouble. Waiting for an addict to get better is like waiting for a sinking ship to patch itself- it’s just not going to happen without outside help. We can be your lifeboat.

With the help of programs like Caron Foundation and Hazelden, we’ve been able to create plans of action for families around the world. Contact us at 877-320-0247 for help today.

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The face of substance abuse today

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

As posted July 3, 2009 on CNN’s American Morning

From my desk on the front lines of addiction treatment, the view is staggering. Prescription drugs are prevalent, proliferating and have introduced a new generation to the wonderful world of drug addiction.

These are people who otherwise might never have experienced addiction. The previous barriers to entry of stigma and circumstance were too high. Dangerous neighborhoods and unsavory characters, untrustworthy chemicals to be taken in unspecific amounts and the fear of becoming addicted kept most amateurs on the sidelines. But in 1996 that all changed.

In January of 1996, Purdue Pharma, a privately-held pharmaceutical company, launched the marketing campaign for their new pain relief product OxyContin. OxyContin was supposed to be nonabusable thanks to a special time-release ingredient. Unfortunately, this proved not to be true.

This might not have been such a big deal had Purdue not launched a multi-million dollar national advertising campaign, targeting both doctors and consumers alike. This campaign had a two-pronged approach. First Purdue incented doctors to prescribe their products then they encouraged consumers to request them by promising legitimacy, safety and lack of consequences.

From a purely business standpoint it was the right thing to do ““ if you can drive demand you can sell more product. From a “What are the long term effects on our society?” standpoint ““ it was devastating.

Today, three percent of our population is abusing prescription drugs. Prescription drug abuse accounts for forty percent of all treatment center admissions. Prescription drug abuse is growing fastest among teenagers and young adults.

These are the worst stats we could hope for.

Now, 13 years later, we are beginning to understand what happened. The question that haunts us all is “What are we going to do about it?”

Long-term solutions are indeed challenging, but here are three ideas you can adopt right now that will foster immediate positive change.

1. Restrict readily available supply. One of the easiest ways prescription drugs get diverted to the street or abused is through unmanaged access or theft from American homes. If you have leftover, unused portions of prescription pain medication in the medicine cabinet at home ““ get rid of them.

2. Talk to your doctor. The more information you give your health care professional(s) about medications you are on and the more questions you ask about medications the better for both of you. Avoid becoming an “accidental addict” due to lack of communication.

3. Don’t accept the status quo. Just because someone tells you, “it’s okay, I’ve got a prescription,” doesn’t necessarily make it okay. Trust your gut. Be willing to take risks to keep others safe. Be willing to be the bad guy. Be willing to be wrong.

4. Make help available to those that are struggling. If someone you know is struggling with an addiction to prescription drugs get him or her help as soon as possible. Treatment works.

Substance abuse is one of our nation’s largest health issues and prescription drug abuse is its face today. There are no easy solutions but there are solutions if we are all willing to do the work.

I also found this blog on  addictiontomorrow.blogspot.com’s in-depth look into the federal advisory panel’s decisions to recommend a ban on Percocet and Vicodin because of their effects on the liver. Addiction Tomorrow talks about the  growing concern about over prescribing, long-term effects, and information from the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andrew Wainwright.

________

Andrew T. Wainwright is a national expert on addictions and intervention. He is co-author of the book “It’s Not Okay to Be a Cannibal ““ How to Stop Addiction from Eating Your Family Alive” and CEO for AiR, which provides behavioral health case management services that are a beneficial addition to the treatment of chemical dependency, mental health and eating disorders.

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Tune in to CNN Friday, July 3rd at 7:10am EST

Thursday, July 2nd, 2009

AiR’s Andrew Wainwright scheduled for American Morning on CNN

Founder and CEO, Andrew Wainwright, will be on CNN’s American Morning to talk about prescription drug abuse. AiR feels that the more exposure and information about addiction provided to the public, the more people can receive help and be saved.

Check local listings.

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AiR on CNN: Debates Over Legalization of All Drugs

Sunday, May 17th, 2009

AiR’s Andrew Wainwright on CNN’s American Morning

Aired May 15, 2009 – 06:00 ET

ROBERTS: The nation’s new drug czar is raising eyebrows for promising to stop using the phrase “war on drugs” because it could be misleading. He says he favors treatment and prevention over locking up drug users.

Joining me now to talk about this and the debate over legalizing drugs is Jeff Miron. He’s an economist at Harvard University who supports legalization. And Andrew Wainwright who works to help addicts through his company, Assistance in Recovery. He’s a former addict, and he is against legalization.

So, the new drug czar, in an interview with “The Wall Street Journal” said the following, gentleman: “Regardless of how you try to explain to people that it’s a war on drugs or a war on a product, people see a war as a war on them, a war on individuals. And we’re not at war with people in this country.”

Jeff Miron, he’s not advocating legalization. In fact, he opposes it. But he wants a greater focus on treatment and prevention rather than incarceration. His own stepson suffered from addiction.

Are his ideas the right ones or the wrong ones?

JEFF MIRON, DIRECTOR OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES, HARVARD: Well, I think they’re a huge step in the right direction. I completely agree with him that the metaphor “war on drugs” is incredibly counterproductive and sends exactly the wrong signal. We shouldn’t have a policy which targets people within our own society and punishes them for something that they’re doing which may not be harming others.

I wish it would go farther and support legalization. And I think there’s another option which is both legalize and not spend money on treatments but I still think that the stance he’s taking will at least open debate and give us a better tone to the overall policy.

ROBERTS: Andrew Wainwright as we mentioned you had problems with drugs. You were in treatment. In fact, you were pushed into treatment after an intervention. If drugs were legal as Jeff Miron has advocated, would you have ever sought that treatment?

ANDREW WAINWRIGHT, PRESIDENT & CEO, ASSISTANCE IN RECOVERY, INC.: I think it’s a — I think legalization is a tough road, a tough pitch. I think when folks are that unstable and making that difficult decision, it’s hard for them to ask to advocate on their behalf.

So, I’m not a proponent of legalization. I’m a proponent of treatment. And I’m excited with the new drug czar and the road we’re taking here. I think the opportunity for more treatment and a new understanding about addiction is, I think, our best bet moving forward.

ROBERTS: Back in the 1990s, Barry McCaffrey who was the drug czar, talked, you know, very much the same sort of talk that Kerlikowske is talking about, ending the war on drugs. He said that addiction had to be treated more like a disease like cancer. He increased funding for treatment and education.

In fact, take a look at the figures here. Funding for treatment went up 35 percent. Education and prevention went up 52 percent. Yet at the same time, two million more people became drug users during that time.

Andrew, it doesn’t sound like it worked very well.

WAINWRIGHT: Well, I think we’re looking at a shorter period of time to judge long-term effects. And we have been battling, you know, what we call the “war on drugs” for 40 years. We had surge in drug use in the late ’80s and the early ’90s. And some of the studies are coming out just, you know, only five years later.

I’ve seen a real big rise in treatment availability, and the cost of treatment to make it available to larger numbers of people in the late ’90s and the beginning of this century. So, I think that the numbers in recovery are going up. I think the advocacy and the understanding of recovery is going up. I think the gamut and the opportunities we have to treat this disease, that’s our leading proponent.

ROBERTS: Jeff, Kerlikowske wants to take a look at programs, the one called High Point North California. It’s one of the — they take the most violent offenders who are dealing drugs and they put them in jail. But the other ones, they bring them together in a community meeting setting with family and friends, and they say, look, we’ve got all this evidence on you. We could put you in jail, but we won’t put you in jail if you promise to reform your ways. Apparently, in High Point it’s been very successful.

Is that something you think that could translate across the country?

MIRON: I think that there are some merits in those sorts of program. Partially, they’re not a strict criminal justice approach. Therefore, they don’t generate the sort of violence that a strict incarceration or arrest approach does.

At the same time, I think those are little bit of false hope, because part of what happens in those situations is they push the drug activity to some other part of the city or some other part of the area. More generally on treatment, I think we have to avoid assuming that that’s a cure. It’s absolutely right the treatment is very effective for lots of people.

But thinking that we can avoid having to deal with the negatives of drugs by providing treatment is a false hope. We have to accept that there will be a whole range of use patterns whether it’s legal or illegal. For example, as we’ve seen with alcohol.

ROBERTS: Why don’t you talk to us about that, Andrew? What did treatment do for you?

WAINWRIGHT: Well, I think today — I think that Jeff is right. We need a multi-tier approach. You know, societally — you know, some of that is criminal justice, some of that is prevention and some of that is treatment.

Today, treatment is the only real route. When folks are already addicted, which a generous part or portion of this population 22 million Americans are, it’s the only real answer. We’ve proven that putting them in jail and filling up for a (INAUDIBLE) folks isn’t the answer. So in lieu of another great solution, which we’re hoping are coming –

ROBERTS: Well, I mean — well, talk from personal experience. Did treatment save you?

WAINWRIGHT: It did. I was born and raised in Washington, D.C. Went to treatment from there to Minnesota in 1995, and so for 12 years as a singular product of the treatment system. Without that, I don’t know what could have happened.

ROBERTS: All right. Andrew Wainwright, Jeff Miron, it’s good to check in with you this morning. Obviously, we’ll be talking a lot more about this in the coming weeks and months.

Thanks very much.

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