Not long ago, one of my long-term loved ones formerly from the streets of Kensington was seeking detox care from a facility in which they had been previously multiple times. In those past visits to that facility, this individual had signed out AMA a couple of times and been Narcaned a couple of times due to a suspected overdose on campus.
But I do want to add and regard to these supposed overdoses, when you look at the details and the circumstances, I highly suspect that these were not actual overdoses. But that topic goes beyond the point of this blog.
This individual was seeking care not long ago from this exact facility. This particular facility does offer a combination of services that are very much needed by this person and not found at other facilities. Again, the details of that go beyond the point of this blog.
Now let's get to the point of this blog.
This facility was trying to not allow this individual to be admitted there because of their AMAs and their supposed overdoses on site.
In the end, this facility did accept their admission and as of this writing things are going well. But here's the point, if this individual was dealing with years and years of diabetes for example, and they were having problems at the facility because of their diabetes, and if those problems were persisting outside of the facility, the facility would not look at them and try to reject their entrance into the facility.
The stigma of addiction otherwise known as ‘substance use disorder’ is discriminated against and treated very differently than a more traditional and yet equally devastating diagnosis of uncontrolled diabetes.
Of course there are differences. But the issue is that people with substance use disorder are seen as different or inferior or some other sad interpretation of diagnosis. It is high time that we look at substance use disorder on equal terms as diabetes or any other disease of the mind and body.
When we begin to do so, substance use disorder patients will start receiving on equal terms the treatment and the dignity and the honor and the respect and the love that they deserve as human beings.
