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Monitored Antabuse in the emergency room.
Currents in Alcoholism
|January 1, 1979
Summary
Monitored Antabuse (disulfiram) treatment at STARS offers a structured outpatient program for motivated patients and long-term support for court-referred individuals, promoting sustained sobriety and lifestyle changes.
Area of Science:
- Addiction Medicine
- Psychopharmacology
- Public Health
Background:
- The Southern Tier Alcoholism Rehabilitation Service (STARS) provides comprehensive addiction treatment.
- Monitored Antabuse (disulfiram) has been utilized for select patients on an outpatient basis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of outpatient monitored Antabuse in a general hospital setting.
- To assess the program's utility for both self-motivated and court-referred patients.
- To highlight the cost-effectiveness and long-term benefits of the STARS program.
Main Methods:
- Daily outpatient administration of Antabuse in the hospital emergency room.
- Serving over 100 patients with varying levels of motivation and referral sources.
- Implementing specific procedures for administration, record-keeping, confidentiality, and payment.
Main Results:
- Successful short-term use by self-motivated patients for extended structure and support post-detoxification or relapse.
- Effective long-term use for poorly motivated, court-referred patients, including those with prior treatment failures.
- Facilitation of sustained sobriety (several months) in the patient's home environment, enabling lifestyle changes.
Conclusions:
- Outpatient monitored Antabuse is a valuable tool for diverse patient populations in addiction recovery.
- The STARS program demonstrates cost-effectiveness for patients and cost-avoidance for payers.
- Long-term sobriety and development of new lifestyles are achievable through this structured, supportive approach.