Another Alternative: A Ninety-Day Contractual Detoxification Treatment Program

Abstract

In May, 1974, Fresno County's Narcotic Abuse Treatment Program began a twenty-one-day outpatient methadone detoxification treatment modality. This short-term detoxification treatment was offered in addition to the maintenance program begun in November, 1973. During the course of its operation, an on-going evaluation of the program was accomplished to assess the efficacy of further utilization of this expensive and difficult treatment modality [1]. The results of the evaulation suggested an alternative treatment modality [2]. A ninety-day contractual detoxification program was offered to a group of patients who were eligible for admission to the maintenance program. The purpose of this paper is to examine this alternative treatment modality, its characteristics, its therapeutic outcomes and the rationale for its use.