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Methadone: Gloucestershire

Answer

The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following tables.

Figures on the number of prescription items for methadone prescribed in Gloucestershire primary care trust (PCT) and the other PCTs from which it was formed in October 2006
	Items	Financial year
PCT	Methadone classification	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10¹
Cheltenham and Tewkesbury	Cough suppressant	7	2	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Analgesia	13	6	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Substance dependence	1,174	706	n/a	n/a	n/a
Cotswold and Vale	Cough suppressant	—	1	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Analgesia	3	4	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Substance dependence	628	405	n/a	n/a	n/a
West Gloucestershire	Cough suppressant	—	—	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Analgesia	48	17	n/a	n/a	n/a
	Substance dependence	2,117	1,772	n/a	n/a	n/a
Gloucestershire	Cough suppressant	n/a	4	5	7	5
	Analgesia	n/a	19	60	102	76
	Substance dependence	n/a	2,623	5,930	6,744	3,730
Total		3,990	5,559	5,995	6,853	3,811
¹ April to September.
Notes:
1. Data at PCT level is taken from the ePACT system (Prescribing Analysis and Cost Tool), which stores data for 60 months. Data for the final quarter of 2009 is embargoed until after the publication of the associated National Statistic in April 2010. The ePACT system covers prescriptions prescribed by general practitioners (GPs), nurses, pharmacists and others in England and dispensed in the community in the United Kingdom. For data at PCT level, prescriptions written by a prescriber located in a particular PCT but dispensed outside that PCT will be included in the PCT in which the prescriber is based. Prescriptions written in England but dispensed outside England are included. Prescriptions written in hospitals/clinics that are dispensed in the community, prescriptions dispensed in hospitals, dental prescribing and private prescriptions are not included in PACT data. It is important to note this as some British National Formulary (BNF) sections have a high proportion of prescriptions written in hospitals that are dispensed in the community.
2. The BNF describes three uses for Methadone, as a cough suppressant, for analgesia and for the treatment of substance dependence. Figures for each of these have been given but the classification does not guarantee that it was used for that purpose.

The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) figures for the Gloucestershire drugs partnership area on the number of people receiving prescribed opioid substitute treatment (mainly methadone or buprenorphine) from specialist community services or their GP, but not which drug they are being prescribed.

	Number
2005-06	1,358
2006-07	1,459
2007-08	1,542
2008-09	1,683
Notes:
1. Figures collected by NDTMS before 2005-06 are not considered robust enough broken down at local level.
2. Figures combine numbers receiving prescribed opioid substitute treatment from a specialist community services or GPs.
3. NDTMS does not record which drug is prescribed (methadone or buprenorphine).
4. Figures for Gloucestershire PCT are not collected centrally but the Trust covers the same area as the drugs partnership.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

508 c244-6W; 323348

Session

2009-10

Subjects

Gloucestershire Methadone

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk