Pittard Clinic

Our Mission is to provide stabilization to opiate addicted individuals, allowing redirection to a more normalized existence incorporating better physical and mental health. The Pittard Clinic was opened in November 2007, under the direction of Dr. M. Donald Pittard. Dr. Pittard had a long term affiliation with The Toccoa Clinic as a family practiti... oner before discovering the unmet need in addiction medicine. Though Dr. Pittard passed away in the summer of 2011, his family has maintained in his honor, a solid commitment to provide medical and counseling services well beyond those required by the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, the federal agency, responsible for providing direction to all medication associated treatment facilities for opioid dependence. We understand that opiate addiction is a chronic medical condition that responds to treatment. At The Pittard Clinic, we provide buprenorphine (subutex) or methadone as medication to stabilize opiate addicted individuals. Personal counseling with attention to the psychosocial, legal and financial realities of each of our clients is incorporated into the treatment program. Why are methadone and buprenorphine used in stabilization of opiate addicted individuals? Many critics of medication assisted treatment (MAT) for opiate addicted individuals complain that using these opioids are simply replacing one opiate with another. These medications prescribed and titrated carefully have very long half lives (the time it takes for one half of the medication in the body to be removed). This provides for significantly reduced euphoria, while providing sufficient occupation of the opioid receptors to avoid withdrawal and cravings. With proper titration and avoidance of other drug classes which reduce safety (e.g. Alcohol, benzodiazepines) these medications should allow people to remain alert and capable of the operating moving machinery. The emphasis of MAT is stabilization. We are not curing a chronic medical condition. This is akin to our abilities ...Read More