They Do Things Differently over There: Doctors,Drugs,and the “British System” of Treating Opiate Addiction

Abstract

The “British System” for treating opiate problems developed in the early part of the 20^th century. Marked by an absence of a centrally coordinated policy, the system allowed doctors freedom and flexibility in prescribing to patients with opiate-related problems. These core features of the system have been retained despite buffetings from heroin epidemics among the young in the 1960s and 1980s and the challenge of HIV/AIDS among injecting drug users. Crime reduction became the focus of British drug policy in the 1990s, but nevertheless, treatment is still recognized as a key component of integrated UK drug policy in the early 21^st century. Independence and diversity have thrived over this time. So what does the British System comprise today? And where is it going for tomorrow?