Är läkemedel lösningen? En kvalitativ intervjustudie om socialsekreterares uppfattningar kring läkemedelsassisterad behandling

Sammanfattning: The aim of this study was to examine social workers perceptions of medication assisted treatment. We have made a qualitative interview study in which we interviewed seven municipal social workers that have knowledge and experience of working with people who have substance abuse problems and medication assisted treatment. We found that the social workers are describing both advantages and disadvantages of the treatment method. They perceive that medication assisted treatment for some clients leads to a better quality of life while for others it means a simple solution where the core of the abuse is not processed. The social workers describe that the treatment should primarily be offered to clients who have had an abuse for a long time and tried other traditional treatment methods and its possibilities. The social workers also perceive that there is too much medicinal focus on the treatment method. They argue that the presence of side abuse is a crucial factor if they perceive the medical assisted treatment as successful or not.