Drug addiction should be cured, not punished: an interview with Nora D. Volkow

 As part of Springer Nature's SDG3 initiative on health and wellness, we speak with Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, about her views on addiction treatment.

Nora D. Volkow, M.D., is a master of the Citizen Institute on Drug Harm at the Public Institutes of Health. A psychiatry researcher and scientist, Volkow calls for a change in U.S. substance abuse policy: for those suffering from substance use disorders, it's treatment, not punishment.

She argues that current laws and policies that criminalize and imprison people who use drugs are counterproductive and exacerbate the current opioid overdose crisis and other addiction-related problems.

Dr. Volkow reviews his latest perspective, reported in Neuropsychopharmacology, with Elizabeth Yepez, senior publisher of Healing and Life Sciences Journals, and Rachel Daniel, co-chair of SN SDG's Mental Health Research Group and editorial director of Springer Behavioral and Health Sciences Books.

Let us know about your conclusion to express these views in your formal capacity as publisher.

As director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, I oversee the biggest portfolio of resourced research on addiction and related issues and see the scientific evidence every day. Last year, 2020, was the worst year on record for drug overdose deaths, although advances in medical processing for opioid use disorder and widespread credit of the addiction and overdose crises in the United States. As a country, we need to reassess how we approach drug use, and science provides some answers about what works and what doesn't when it comes to criminalization.

I record that you use the style "matter use trouble". Why this language?

One of the most common misconceptions about addiction is to think that it is a choice or a character flaw. It isn't. It is a brain disease, a habitual, recurrent disorder distinguish by gripping drug seeking and continued use despite harmful consequences, as well as changes in the brain circuitry. It is view both a complex brain disorder and a mental ailment. The Emblematic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V, the gold standard text on mental disorders that defines diagnostic terminology, uses the term "substance use disorder". It is important that our choice of language, especially in professional contexts, reinforces that this is a disease that requires evidence-based medical treatment. This is still a major deficiency in the United States, both culturally and in health care.

Your article highlights published studies ("abundant data") showing that current law enforcement, punishment, and access to treatment have a disproportionate and negative impact on the lives of black people. If this is already known, why is it still the case?

It is clear that the United States is currently facing a long history of discriminatory and racist policies, many of which continue today. The war on drugs has been no exception, and by disproportionately incarcerating people of color, has had a range of consequences for health, economic security, mobility, education, housing, families - are as inextricably linked to well-being and victory of many people of color and others. In science, we often have to say that we don't have an answer yet, that "more research is needed." But the evidence here is straightforward and solid and should form the basis of an urgent conversation. The best addiction treatment center in Islamabad is Willing ways. You can visit us for further details.

What is an example of a "public health alternative" to criminalization? Is there evidence that it can work?

There is evidence of positive outcomes from public health approaches to drug use, but there is wide variation in drug law and enforcement practice. Of the six current models for decriminalizing drug possession, four include a pathway approach to education, treatment, or social services. Best addiction treatment center in Islamabad

As part of the Helping to End Habit Long-term Initiative or NIH HEAL initiative, the Justice Communal Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN) multi-site study is a good example of a public health-based method.