New UGA Study On Barriers To Effective Drug Addiction Treatment
Statistics say that more than 23 million Americans over the age of 12 need to be treated for drug addiction, yet only about 10 percent of them get the treatment they need. Of the 10 percent who do get treatment, more often than not, they are matched into a program that isn’t designed to help their specific issues.
Paul Roman is the director of UGA’s Center for Research on Behavioral Health and Human Services Delivery and the University of Georgia Distinguished Research Professor of Sociology. He says, “We have treatments that work, and we have people who want treatment. The problem now is getting treatment providers to adopt new, promising practices so that substance abusers can get the best treatment available.”
To that end, Roman is leading a team of researchers in the pursuit of improving the quality of drug addiction treatment and increasing its availability for those who need it. His team has been awarded a number of grants from both public and private organizations that add up to about $9 million. His immersion in the world of substance abuse treatment research for the past 25 years has revealed to him a wide variety of service options but also the systemic barriers that keep those treatments from those who need them most.
David Lee is the vice president for research at University of Georgia. He says, “It is hard to overestimate the societal value, both in dollars and in quality of life, of identifying effective ways to disseminate research-based treatments. It is a source of pride for UGA that we have such a strong research group working in this area.”
Steven Beach, the director of the UGA Institute for Behavioral Research, agrees. “The intellectual impact of Roman’s group over the past 15 years has been tremendous. It is critically important that we foster the dialogue between treatment providers and those providing innovative, cost-effective, treatment improvements - and Roman’s work has done precisely that.”
I’m wondering how much of that $9 million will go toward the study of buprenorphine in the form of Suboxone treatment and detox. It’s definitely true that a lack of information and access can keep Suboxone out of the hands of those who need it the most. Perhaps this study will help fix that.
For more information on this study and others, check out University of Georgia.
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