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New private clinic provides therapies for drug addicts
A private drug rehabilitation clinic was opened Saturday in Denpasar, providing a new facility for drug addicts on the island to treat their addictions
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A private drug rehabilitation clinic was opened Saturday in Denpasar, providing a new facility for drug addicts on the island to treat their addictions.
Previously, drug rehabilitation was mostly offered by hospitals.
The Harapan Baru (New Hope) clinic is located at Jl. Teuku Umar in the busiest trade district of the island's capital, Denpasar.
The clinic's opening was followed by a discussion participated by the head of Bali's Regional Narcotic Body (BNP), I Nyoman Sutedja, head of Bali Police's Narcotic Education Unit, Ni Wayan Sri, and representatives from NGOs working on drug-related issues.
"The clinic provides detoxification programs and substitution therapy using Subutex. Meanwhile, follow-up therapies to achieve the free soul and social stages were conducted in cooperation with NGOs, because we can't work alone on this matter," the clinic's founder Denny Thong said.
Thong is a psychiatrist, who for decades has actively assisted drug addicts and NGOs on the island.
Subutex is a high-dose buprenorphine (a semisynthetic opiate) pill prescribed to treat opioid addiction.
Administered sublingually, Subutex significantly decreases withdrawal pains associated with opioid substances, such as heroin. The addicts substitute heroin with Subutex during the course of their treatment.
Despite the availability of various medications and treatments for drug addictions, Thong said addiction was a very complex problem. To completely break free from the chain of addiction, a patient must undergo at least three stages of freedom.
"It starts with a free body -- the physical body is cleansed from the addictive substances. Then free soul stage, when the psychological attachment to the substances has disappeared. The last stage when the former addict regains his skill and ability to perform as a productive member of society," Thong said.
A heroin addict, Riko (not his real name), said Subutex therapy was effective for him. The therapy had enabled him to work again.
Riko has undergone the therapy for two years. He had been addicted to heroin since he was 19 years old. He spent ten years participating in various therapies to treat his addiction. All the therapies failed miserably, he said.
"Four of my fellow addict friends have died. Subutex convinced me that I still have new hope," he said.
BNP head, I Nyoman Sutedja said drug-related cases were increasing both on national and local level. In 2002, the Indonesia National Police (INP) reported 3,751 drug-related cases, in 2007 the number had soared into 22,630 cases. Bali recorded an average annual increase of 28 percent on drug-related offenses.
"On average 41 people die every day because of drug-related incidents," he said.
Bali Police's Narcotic Education Unit head Ni Wayan Sri said the clinic would boost efforts to eradicate drug abuses. "The government has a limited resource to assist the drug-addicts and alleviate the adverse impacts of drug-abuse," she said.
Harapan Baru clinic has treated as many as 90 drug-addicts.
