Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are ways of doing that. Methadone has been in our communities for many years, providing help for people with addiction problems to live their lives. Many people have been on methadone for some time and want to stay on it. Sometimes it is sometimes difficult to change people's attitude to moving from one service to another. Methadone helps them to achieve their daily tasks. Another drug, Suboxone, can be used instead of methadone but it is not for everybody because people with other medical issues cannot take it.

To answer the question on what are we doing about the drug services in our communities, we have the national strategy of Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery. We work on the ground with the HSE, statutory agencies and other bodies to bring people with addiction problems through recovery and support and, above all, deal with their families. The stigma of addiction is still alive and well in our communities and we are trying to tackle that and create a health-led approach to the national drugs strategy. It is about reducing the harm and helping people who have been on methadone for a long time to have a different focus in their lives.

Methadone will continue to be very much a part of the service that is provided for people who are in addiction but services will also be provided by level 1 and level 2 GPs. Considerable work is being done with people in programmes on a daily basis, trying to facilitate them to go forward and live normal lives. I meet and speak with many people who are on methadone and it is like a long-term illness for them because they need a certain amount of methadone to continue to function. Level 1 and level 2 GPs and pharmacists are doing their best to help people with their doses and the prescription of methadone will continue for some time. It is not the be-all and end-all of drug treatment but it is a means by which people can be looked after on maintenance programmes. That is what is happening.

That is why it is so important that the national drugs strategy is seen as a health-led document, rather than a criminal justice document, and people who have specific illnesses relating to their addiction to alcohol and drugs are guided through the services in their communities. The HSE and some of the primary care service centres across the country provide methadone clinics and needle exchange clinics. People are visiting these centres on a daily basis. They are not separated, they go in the same door as other patients and participate in the healthcare system. One of the biggest problems is the stigma relating to addiction and to the families of addicts. People who are trapped in addiction experience that stigma every day, particularly when they are living in communities where their families can also be targeted.