Substitute treatments in Belgium, Development of a model for assessment of types of care and patients (Phase II)

Persons :

• Prof. dr.  CASSELMAN Joris - Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KU Leuven)
  Financed belgian partner
  Duration: 1/10/2003-31/10/2004
  
• Prof. dr.  PELC Isidore - Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
  Financed belgian partner
  Duration: 1/10/2003-31/10/2004
  

Description :

Since August 2002, a new Belgian law concerning the legal recognition of substitute treatments has modified the law of 24th February 1921 regarding 'the traffic of poisonous, soporific, narcotic, disinfectant or antiseptic substances'.
This new law fills in a juridical gap, that has allowed the development of diversified practices on the matter. However, several measures still remain to be determined (by Royal Decrees). These measures must be based on a scientific assessment of the various above mentioned practices. The main objective of this research is to study the diverse practical means of access to substitute treatments on an out-patient basis, which are:

1) doctors, through private consultations;
2) doctors, organised into help networks;
3) out-patient departments, specialised in the assistance of drug addicts (“session centres”);
4) “Medical-Social Open Centres for drug users” (MSOC).

And this spread over Flanders, Wallonia and the Brussels Capital Region. This research is the continuation of the outcome of a former research, namely 'Substitute treatments in Belgium, development of a model for assessment of types of care and patients' (phase I) conducted by the same researchers between August 2002 and September 2003 under the aegis of the Belgian Federal Science Policy.

The assessment contains two parts: one quantitative and the other qualitative.
For what concerns the quantitative approach, a questionnaire named SEQ (Substitution, Expectations, Quality of Life) has been developed on the basis of the results of the phase I. This questionnaire will be administrated twice to the same patients (in January and in June) to obtain a measure of the patients’ evolution in terms of their Quality of Life and of their various expectations and objectives.

For what concerns the qualitative approach, a collection of data on the diversity of objectives and practices of the practitioners will be achieved through interviews and Focus Groups, especially for what concerns the organisational processes of substitute treatments.


ULB Promoter and Co-ordinator: Pr. I. Pelc
KULeuven Promoter: Pr. J. Casselman
KULeuven Researcher: K. Meuwissen
ULB Researchers: I. Baert, I. Bergeret, Dr. Ph. Corten, P. Nicaise, L. From

Documentation :

• DR/07 on the Drugs website

  Les traitements de substitution en Belgique : développement d'un modèle d'évaluation des diverses filières de soins et des patients : rapport final  Pelc, Isidore - Nicaise, Pablo - Corten, Philippe... et al  Gent : Academia Press, 2005 (PB6111)
  [To download]  [To order] 

  Substitutiebehandelingen in België: Ontwikkeling van een model ter evaluatie van de verschillende zorgtrajecten en van de patiënten : samenvatting    Brussel : Federaal Wetenschapsbeleid, 2004 (SP1413)
  [To download] 

  Les traitements de substitution en Belgique: Développement d'un modèle d'évaluation des diverses filières de soins et des patients : résumé    Bruxelles : Politique scientifique fédérale, 2004 (SP1414)
  [To download] 

  Substitution treatments in Belgium: Development of a model for the assessment of different types of services and patients : summary    Brussels : Federale Science Policy, 2004 (SP1415)
  [To download]