Welcome to Methadonia : A Social Worker's Candid Account of Life in a Methadone Clinic

Rating:
Summary: A Worthy Contribution of the Field of Addiction Medicine
Review: What is most striking about this well-written work by Ms. Baldino in the bravery and honesty with which she descibes her experience as a young therapist working in a methadone clinic. Where other reviews have criticized Ms. Baldino for the feelings of fear and sadness she describes in working with methadone patients, I praise her for this honesty. She describes the emotions she experienced in working with these patients with such openness, not to condem patients of methadone clinics, but rather to facilitate the reader's understanding of her subjective experience. What's more, she uses her experience as a therapist, particularly the challenges that she faced in providing treatment to patients, to illustrate where many drug treatment programs are lacking in the services that they provide. Along these lines, one of the most valuable contributions that Ms. Baldino makes through this work are the specific and thoughful policy changes she recommends that would improve the effectiveness of treatment programs.

Rating:
Summary: A Worthy Contribution of the Field of Addiction Medicine
Review: What is most striking about this well-written work by Ms. Baldino in the bravery and honesty with which she descibes her experience as a young therapist working in a methadone clinic. Where other reviews have criticized Ms. Baldino for the feelings of fear and sadness she describes in working with methadone patients, I praise her for this honesty. She describes the emotions she experienced in working with these patients with such openness, not to condem patients of methadone clinics, but rather to facilitate the reader's understanding of her subjective experience. What's more, she uses her experience as a therapist, particularly the challenges that she faced in providing treatment to patients, to illustrate where many drug treatment programs are lacking in the services that they provide. Along these lines, one of the most valuable contributions that Ms. Baldino makes through this work are the specific and thoughful policy changes she recommends that would improve the effectiveness of treatment programs.