The Treatment Center’s Perspective
For those who do suffer from addiction, treatment centers such as Valeo Behavioral Health Care in Topeka can literally mean the difference between life and death. Valeo provides a full range of substance abuse treatment services for adults:
Assessment Social detoxification Inpatient treatment Reintegration Intensive outpatient treatment Continuing care Drug testing Homeless outreach Jail treatment program
Photo by BRIJORAE PRODUCTIONS
In 2016, there were 146 opioid-related overdose deaths in Kansas—a rate of 5.1 deaths per 100,000 persons—compared to the national rate of 13.3 deaths per 100,000. Since 2012, the number of deaths related to synthetic opioids and prescription opioids has slowly decreased. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 82 to 95 opioid prescriptions are written per 100 people in Kansas. Other states, primarily in the east but also including Oklahoma, range 96 to 143 prescriptions per 100 people. This decline is likely a result of the prescription tracking system, K-TRACS, put in place by the State of Kansas. “Missouri doesn’t have a statewide tracking system,” Conlin said. “Without the type of communication we have here between doctors and pharmacies, the numbers in Missouri are drastically different than they are in Kansas.” While K-TRACS has cut down on the abuse of prescription opiates in Kansas, it hasn’t stopped it entirely, and addiction is still a problem for many local residents.
Cathy Walker, director of Valeo Recovery Center, says one of the primary reasons opioid addiction is so hard to combat is because of the physical discomfort involved with detoxification.
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FALL 2018
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