Sir, With regard to a report by Richard Balls on the Cocad conference, he reports that the number of pharmacies willing to be involved in Methadone dispensing has increased from three at the start of 1996 to 22. This is incorrect. The official General Medical Services figures for 1994-1995 show at least 47 pharmacies dispensing to medical card drug misusers in the Eastern Region.
At times the media and, indeed as a result, the public appear under the illusion that a single prescription for Methadone, issued by a doctor and dispensed by a pharmacist, solves all a drug misuser's problems. This could not be further from the truth. The use of Methadone in the treatment of drug misuse requires close monitoring and cooperation between trained professionals in a structured treatment plan. Yours, etc.,
Eastern Region Chairman Irish Pharmaceutical Union, Merrion Road, Ballsbridge,
Dublin 4.