Survey of client satisfaction with opioid substitution program in western Georgia

Opioid substitution therapy (OST) is a recognized approach to treating opioid dependent people and managing the problems associated with this condition. Evidence suggests that it significantly improves the quality of life of the program beneficiaries and their loved ones. It reduces the spread of blood-borne infections, the use of illegal opioids, conflicts with the law, health-damaging and risky behaviors related to HIV transmission, overdoses and etc. (NIDA, 2018). The OST programs are supported by the World Health Organization, the United Nations Joint Program on HIV/AIDS, and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (WHO, UNODC and UNAIDS, 2012).

Today, the OST programs are widely implemented in different regions and countries of the world. Based on this experience, both international and national guidelines and protocols have been developed to help meet quality standards. A number of such documents focus on clinical issues (dosing, admission criteria, treatment of groups with special needs, etc.), e.g., the guide of the World Health Organization (WHO, 2009). In addition, documents have been developed and continue to be developed that focus on more practical issues - such as how to implement and develop a program, based on the local context, i.e. the local socio-economic and cultural specifics of a country or a region (WHO, 2014).

Researching the OST programs are critical to developing manual documents and practical recommendations described above for a particular region or a country. This includes, on the one hand, the study of the program effectiveness and the effectiveness determinants; On the other hand, the study of the service satisfaction and the satisfaction determinants by the beneficiaries of the OST programs.