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September is Recovery Month

Join the Voices for Recovery Month

The Recovery Month observance highlights the societal benefits of substance abuse treatment, lauds the contributions of treatment providers and promotes the message that recovery from substance abuse in all its forms is possible.

Recovery Month provides a platform to celebrate people in recovery and those who serve them. Each September, thousands of treatment programs around the country celebrate their successes and share them with their neighbors, friends, and colleagues in an effort to educate the public about treatment, how it works, for whom, and why.

Recovery Month also serves to educate the public on substance abuse as a national health crisis, that addiction is a treatable disease, and that recovery is possible.

Click here to see what’s going on in your area.


Live Suboxone® help: 1-866-956-9204

The Here to Help™ program is a free service launched by Reckitt Benckiser, Inc., the maker of Suboxone. "Care Coaches" and "Care Coordinators" are available to help patients find a doctor who accepts their insurance, answer questions about their treatment and even call and check in on them (if they want that) Here to Helpto help ease the anxiety of starting this new phase of life. A personal Care Coach can offer guidance and encouragement, help find a counselor, and help patients find educational materials and peer support. A companion website has other tools for patients including a journal and scheduled emails that offer tips and inspiration.

With all of the misinformation about buprenorphine treatment in the media or on the web, having a credible source of accurate information from a live person can be a lifesaver.

Hours: Monday through Friday:
8:00am – 11:00pm, Saturday 8:00am-8:00pm ET.
1-866-956-9204

This service is currently free to patients seeking buprenorphine treatment or already in treatment and patients can maintain anonymity if they choose. Although NAABT.org has answers to questions concerning buprenorphine treatment and AddictionSurvivors.org allows patients to communicate with other patients, talking to a live expert when unsure or concerned about something can make all the difference.

Educating patients will create realistic expectations and will save time in office visits. Some physicians are making the Here to Help™ care coaching and AddictionSurvivors™ peer support part of their treatment protocol.


Treatment Match: NAABT’s Patient Physician Matching System (PPMS)

TreatmentMatch.orgTo automatically have a local buprenorphine physician contact you when there is a treatment opening go to TreatmentMatch.org.

  • Over 80% connection rate
  • Anonymous
  • Free
  • Over 23,500 patients contacted so far

Map of participating physicians (not for dial-up internet)
Map of patients seeking treatment now
Patient registration


New from SAMHSA/CSAT: TAP-30 for nurses

Buprenorphine: A guide for nursesThis guide is intended to provide nurses – including Registered Nurses (RNs), Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), and Nurse Practitioners (NPs) – with general information about buprenorphine products – Suboxone® (buprenorphine and naloxone) and Subutex® (buprenorphine) – for the pharmacological treatment of opioid addiction. The guide can also serve as a resource to help nurses working with community physicians to improve treatment outcomes for individuals receiving office-based treatment for opioid addiction.

Click here to order a free hardcopy


The late Michael Jackson

Of the doctors reported to be caring for Michael Jackson, none had the DATA-2000 waiver which qualifies them to prescribe buprenorphine for addiction. According to the DEA Dr. Conrad Murray or MJ's other doctors Dr. Alimorad Farshchian and Dr. Metzger, do not have the proper credentials to prescribe or administer Buprenorphine for opioid addiction. Although his death was not the result of opioids it was discovered that he had a long-term opioid addiction and investigated treatment at one time.


Create your own practice/clinic/meeting library

An educated patient and educated patient’s family members, make for a better treatment experience for all involved. Consider creating a library of educational materials that patients, clients or members can sign out and take home between appointments or meetings. This can be an inexpensive way to educate and reduce the stigma that still plagues this disease. Here are some suggested sample materials:

Addiction Resource MaterialsDr. Richard GracerA New Prescription for Addiction
Dr. Harold UrschelHealing the Addicted Brain
HBOs Addiction – (Book and DVD)
SAMHSA/CSAT – TIP-40 – Free
NIDA – The Science of Addiction – Free
Dr. Michael SteinThe Addict (see review below)


"The Addict: One Patient, One Doctor, One Year" by Michael Stein

A Book Review by Kathleen Thompson-Gargano, Buprenorphine research nurse at Yale University & Co-founder of NAABT, Inc.

Dr. Michael Stein, a community health physician, seasoned in treating the disease of addiction over the past 20 years, is also the author of several other books, mostly fiction. The title of his book, The Addict, elicited a visceral response of repulsion and urging in me. What was a physician with Stein’s credentials and notoriety thinking by choosing such a stigma reinforcing title? In this book Stein shares his thoughts, insights and professional experiences in caring for one particular addicted young woman, over a one-year period with mention as to her sustained recovery three years later. In order to protect the identity of his main character he blends the true stories of other patients into this character he calls Lucy. Stein’s writing style is excellent and engaging. He makes the argument that the disease of addiction is in part about wanting more and wanting fixes. On pages 26 and 27 he explains his unapologetic use of the term "addict." Although his compelling explanation is not sufficient to convert me to using that term, I appreciate his rationale and feel he explained it very well. Stein states "Heroin has a certain lingering glamour (Pulp Fiction) as well as a darker cultural stigma." While reading this book I felt that I was submerged into the dark side so much that I couldn’t plow through it with the enthusiasm with which I usually read a book. However, I found it a good and interesting read. The question is who would most appreciate this book? I think professionals who treat addiction, are considering treating it and family members who are befuddled by the recidivism of the illness might find it very insightful. The most significant contribution this book makes, in my opinion, is the effectiveness of the medication, Suboxone, in the treatment of opiate addiction.

naabt.org

Free Peer Support Referral Cards – while supplies last! We have referral cards to AddictionSurvivors.org available for no charge.

In some parts of the country patients cannot find live support groups that understand the challenges and benefits of medication assisted treatment. The Addiction Survivors patient community is available 24/7.

Addiction Survivors Referral Cards

To order free cards: email us at MakeContact@naabt.org or fax
860-269-4391. Please include your name, street address and how many cards you would like.


AddictionSurvivors.org
Peer Support Brochure
An explanation of what peer support is and how it differs from therapy and the other components of a complete recovery plan. For multiple copies, email name, street address and quantity to: MakeContact@AddictionSurvivors.org

Addiction Survivors Peer Support Brochure
is a positive, support community that embraces modern evidence-based methods of addiction treatment. It helps relieve the anxiety often associated with beginning a new phase of their lives and helps create realistic expectations of the treatment experience.

About Addiction Survivors. AddictionSurvivors.org is a not-for-profit organization (501c3 tax exempt status pending) dedicated to providing peer support communities for those with addiction disorders and their families and friends.The communities are funded in whole by individuals whose lives have been touched by addiction in one way or another.

Patients and Prescribing Physicians.
Patients and prescribing physicians can now order a free "in case of emergency" wallet card that alert healthcare workers that buprenorphine can affect opioid pain medication. The card also lists a link to this web page: www.naabt.org/emergency
with important relevant links useful if opioid pain treatment becomes necessary. Simply email us a mailing address to send the card to at MakeContact@naabt.org

NAABT Emergency Medical Information

SAMHSA/CSAT

Federal Register Notice
On June 19, SAMHSA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on the use of buprenorphine products in SAMHSAcertified opioid treatment programs (OTPs). If adopted, the proposal would remove the time in treatment dispensing requirements for buprenorphine products used to treat patients in OTPs. The dispensing restrictions would remain in effect for patients treated with methadone. NAABT’s submitted comments.


If you are a certified physician please be sure your information is correct on the physician locator. Please check for spelling and correct phone number.You can now update your own contact information.

Use this link to go to the update form.

If you know of a colleague who is on the list but should not be due to no longer practicing, please advise by calling: 1-866-287-2728 or emailing: info@buprenorphine.samhsa.gov

Voluntary Disclosure: Some of the funding for this organization is provided by anonymous donors whose lives were touched by evidence-based addiction treatment and were willing to help support our mission. NAABT, Inc. has also accepted funding from pharmaceutical companies in the form of "Unrestricted Educational Grants." The grants are "unrestricted" so that there are no "strings" attached. NAABT, Inc. has complete control over how the funds are used, there are no restrictions on the content or mission of this site, and donors have no control over the content of the site or NAABT’s activities. NAABT, Inc. is solely responsible for all of its activities. Click here to learn more about NAABT.

Click here for a PDF version of this newsletter for printing.
The National Alliance of Advocates for Buprenorphine Treatment NAABT, Inc. • P.O. Box 333 • Farmington, CT 06034
Fax: 860.269.4391 • email: MakeContact@naabt.orgnaabt.org