What is Medical Detox?

Substance Use and Medical Detox Programs

Medical detox is the process of getting rid of toxins in the body due to alcohol or drug use with help from clinical professionals. Detoxing with medical supervision ensures the patient can be very closely monitored by specially trained doctors and other providers.

Medical detox can be considered a short-term, inpatient stabilization service to prepare for long-term addiction treatment. A medically supervised detox aims to minimize the physical harm caused by the use (and withdrawal) of toxic substances.

Inpatient medical detox: what you need to know

Every situation is different, of course, but patients – and concerned caregivers – can expect detox to take about a week or more. For successful medical detox treatment, the human body needs to physically and emotionally eliminate harmful toxins from long-term substance abuse. These chemicals deeply influence the way that your brain and body function.

As toxins gradually leave the body, unfortunately, people may experience powerful withdrawal symptoms as they adjust. Many patients experience intense cravings and other side effects of withdrawal. They also risk relapsing because the withdrawal process during detox can be physically taxing and emotionally stressful.

Side effects of medical detox and addiction services

When a patient stops using alcohol or drugs, the body must go through the full detoxification process. As the body self-cleanses, withdrawal symptoms can be uncomfortable, painful and even life-threatening (like seizures).

When a patient is medically detoxing in a hospital or clinical setting, they’re away from the drug and alcohol triggers that can complicate detox. During medical detox, patients suddenly don’t have easy access to the substances they’ve been depending on, and so withdrawal symptoms can get intense.

Inpatient clinicians are specifically trained to help manage and overcome severe mind-body symptoms of substance use detox, which may include:

• Insomnia
• Mood swings
• Anger and irritability
• Nausea and vomiting
• Body chills and tremors
• Muscles aches
• Paranoia and confusion
• Anxiety and depression
• Hunger or loss of appetite

Inpatient medical detox programs

While under medical supervision, people can detox safely with professionals helping them step-by-step. When patients withdraw from drugs or alcohol without inpatient treatment, they may be at greater risk of relapse, more severe withdrawal symptoms, overdose or even death.

Withdrawal symptoms in some patients might last even longer, especially if they’ve been using a mix of hard drugs and alcohol.

Detox from drug or alcohol addiction is a serious medical concern that’s best supported with specially trained medical professionals. Roughly every five minutes an American overdoses, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Unfortunately, many hospitals still don’t have specially trained staff and programming to address substance use disorders. This can cause the patient added stigma and discomfort, while placing hospital staff in jeopardy.

Since alcohol and substance abuse are considered health issues, health insurance might pay for some or all of the costs. Still, medical detox patients can be difficult to manage due to underlying behavioral health issues. Side effects and behavioral challenges can include cognitive and functional impairment.

Medication-assisted treatments for medical detox

When hospitals and inpatient addiction clinics use medication-assisted treatments (MAT), they can help patients safely wean off drugs and manage complete withdrawal.

• Many hospitals and alcohol rehab centers offer medical detox as the first stage of addiction treatment.
• Consider a facility that offers aftercare following detox, like inpatient rehab or outpatient therapy.
• Medications can help prevent withdrawal symptoms and underlying mental health issues.
• Due to the potential for severe withdrawal, MAT is helpful for people with combined alcohol and opioid use disorder.
• If the patient requires MAT to stay sober, they may also need to take daily medications like methadone after detox.

Substance use disorder and co-occurring conditions

About 40% of substance use patients may also experience co-occurring psychiatric disorders, according to NIDA Yet, only 7% (or so) of those patients receive the proper treatment program during the full detox and withdrawal process.

Sometimes, substance use may, in part, help cause a mental health disorder. Other times, a patient might use substances to self-medicate during mental illness. People can also have an undiagnosed mental health issue (depression, sexual trauma) that’s been driving their addictions over time.

Knowing which came first is tricky. Co-occurring mental health and substance use disorder is also called a dual diagnosis and can be harder to treat. If you have a co-occurring disorder or dual diagnosis, be sure the detox program helps manage the psychiatric symptoms too. Keep in mind, most mental health issues will likely intensify during a medical detox and withdrawal.

Sometimes, a physical health issue like chronic pain can create mental health problems. If there’s a debilitating illness, like cancer, the patient may have anxiety from fears of dying or getting sicker. Patients may then self-medicate with drugs or alcohol.

Medical detox is a complicated issue for patients and their families. Proper programming is designed to provide your hospital with clinical behavioral health expertise.

Schedule an appointment

Call 800-727-2407 or complete the online interest form to learn more about Horizon Health’s medical detox programs. We’ll create and implement new programming or help upgrade the behavioral services your hospital already offers.

Horizon Health helps hospital partners implement patient-centered state-of-the-art detox practices. We use customizable measurement tools to help make data-informed decisions that’ll maximize public health initiatives, boost referrals and build census.

About Horizon Health

Horizon Health Behavioral Health Solutions partners with hospitals to manage and/or develop their behavioral health programs while improving patient outcomes. For over 40 years we have had leadership experience in helping with planning, development and implementation of a new behavioral health service line or significantly improving existing programs.

A few of our program offerings include, medical detox, child and adolescent behavioral health, adult behavioral health and geriatric behavioral health programs. Our team of experts in clinical, operational, financial and data analytics and outcomes provide excellence in support and leadership to your teams and drive proven results.

If you are interested in learning how Horizon Health can help you launch a new program or improve your existing behavioral health program, give us a call at 800-727-2407.