General News
26 October, 2023
New strategy supporting more locals to get treatment for opioid dependence
A new strategy is assisting more people than ever across the Loddon, Mallee and Grampians regions to access treatment for opioid dependence — including here in Maryborough. An additional 120 people across the region have received treatment in the...
A new strategy is assisting more people than ever across the Loddon, Mallee and Grampians regions to access treatment for opioid dependence — including here in Maryborough.
An additional 120 people across the region have received treatment in the last 12 months under a project through Orticare, based at Ballarat Community Health, to have alcohol and drug nurse practitioners deliver medication and support.
The move has saved people from travelling hundreds of kilometres outside of their home regions to access the support, with the number of clients receiving treatment increasing by five percent from 2019 to 2022.
Opioids include illicit drugs such as heroin, as well as prescription medication like codeine, oxycodone and fentanyl.
Orticare Grampians Loddon Mallee Pharmacotherapy Network manager Pauline Molloy said the number of doctors permitted to prescribe medication for opioid dependence fell by 35 percent in the three years to 2022, meaning a change needed to be made.
“Orticare needed an alternative strategy and nurse practitioners were emerging as a work force so we advocated for ongoing funding from the government and Department of Health to address the concerns,” she said.
“In the first year we were able to see more than 120 new patients as well as being able to provide emergency responses.”
An initial 12 months of funding saw Orticare expand existing clinics in Ballarat and Bendigo and establish new clinics in Maryborough, Echuca and Mildura. The program has also received funding for a further two years.
“If we didn’t have those clinics, we wouldn’t have been able to continue their care,” Ms Molloy said.
Data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistics data collection shows that on an average day in Victoria, 15,153 clients were receiving pharmacotherapy treatment for opioid dependence — with opioids contributing to around 10 percent of all drug-related hospitalisations in Australia each year.
The success of the program was highlighted at the recent Alliance of Rural & Regional Community Health conference at Creswick, where successful and innovative health service delivery models and leading research revealing solutions to improve the health of rural and regional communities were dis-cussed and promoted.
Ms Molloy said that while there were challenges in finding and retaining staff, she remained positive about the future of the service.
Residents wishing to access Orticare’s services in the region can do so by contacting the Australian Community Services Organisation’s centralised intake number on 1300 022 760 or DirectLine on 1800 888 236.