Ethical Considerations of Medication-Assisted Treatment and Harm Reduction Methods

Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) and Harm Reduction Programs are oft-debated as to the ethics of the approach, whether they are helpful or harmful, and who makes the decision on when to implement the programs. This involves the ethical implications of beneficence, justice, autonomy, and non-malfeasance.

Harm reduction, by necessity, focuses on health and social issues around which there is often community misunderstanding, stigma, and fear (e.g. in relation to blood-born viruses, illicit drug use, sexually transmissible infections, mental health, etc. We will discuss potential ethical dilemmas, common misconceptions, and the potential for a benefit vs harm viewpoint.

In this course, we discuss multiple aspects of medication-assisted treatment such as the history of, an evidence-based approach, ethical considerations & biases of the helping professional and how to spot microaggressions when working with substance use clients, and any jurisdiction-relevant legal information regarding the use of MAT and Harm Reduction Methods.

Upon completion of this training, participants will be able to:

• Define the core concepts of Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) is & what the neurological implications of MAT are.
• Classify research regarding statistics supporting/countering the efficacy of MAT as an evidence-based practice.
• Implement the Guiding Principles of MAT; conflicting opinions of MAT surrounding the disease model of addiction; concerns in the criminal setting.
• Critic the potential for ethical considerations/violations of Harm Reduction – An Anathema in America today; human rights and the Gardasil example for young girls.