Valuing methadone takeaway doses: The contribution of service-user perspectives to policy and practice

Unlike health policy in the United Kingdom, Australian health policy does not provide a strong endorsement for the involvement of service users in the design, delivery and evaluation of drug treatment services. There has been no research into service-users' views on the contentious issue of methadone takeaway doses. This study explores the value of takeaway doses from service-users' perspectives and highlights the contributions that service-user involvement can make to further drug treatment planning, delivery and evaluation. Twenty-five methadone clients were interviewed about the value of methadone takeaway doses. Benefits cited by participants included convenience, less travel and lower costs, protection of confidentiality and less restriction on employment as well as less tangible issues related to feelings of 'normality' and flexibility in daily life patterns. Feeling trusted as a methadone client was also an important result of accessing takeaway doses. The inclusion of service-user perspectives is important for ensuring that services are not wrongly targeted and that evaluations of those services do not underestimate or misrepresent their value to clients. This is particularly important in policy around illicit drug use where public and political opinion is often a key driver in decision making.