Affiliations 

  • 1 Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin
MyJurnal

Abstract

Study on motivational readiness for change is crucial to promote understanding of behavioural change among Methadone Maintenance Tretment (MMT) patients. A widely used method recently is via Stages of Change and Treatment Eagerness Scale for drug abusers (SOCRATES-8D). The aims of this study were to; 1) determine the general level of readiness for change, 2) assess differences in terms of readiness to change (RtC) based on socio-demography and clinical characteristics and 3) compare RtC with different health-related quality of life (HRQOL) levels. Methods: A convenient sample of MMT volunteers from Terengganu, Malaysia was enrolled. The SOCRATES-8D was administered (3 subscales; Likert-type responses 1-5; higher score, better RtC). Data was analysed using SPSS 15, employing descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests for score comparisons. Results: The mean age of 55 Malay respondents was 37.0 years, male (98.2%), = lower secondary qualification (65.5%) and addiction period > 15 years (52.7%). Generally the Recognition level was "low", Ambivalence and Taking Steps were moderately-rated. Most of them within unsatisfactory levels of RtC. Abusers with < 20 months treatment were significantly "more ready" for behavioural changes (p0.05). Conclusion: Findings demonstrated that patients were rather ready to adopt positive behavioural changes regardless of their sociodemographic backgrounds. Thus continuous efforts and psychosocial support from various authorities should be geared towards enhanced readiness as part of ensuring the success of MMT programme in the future.