Comparison of Progress of Patients with Professional and Paraprofessional Counselors in a Methadone Maintenance Program

Abstract

The progress of two groups of patients on methadone maintenance were compared by examining urine results for use or nonuse of illicit drugs, attainment of a drug-free status, employment, continuous time in treatment, and take-out-of-clinic (TOC) medication (an assessment of a patient's overall progress as determined by the treatment team). Four paraprofessional counselors with an average education level of 12.7 years followed Group A patients (CGA) while five master's degree trained counselors followed Group B patients (CGB) (Table 1).