Treatment guides

Intake usually means an assessment interview, a medical exam with lab tests, and a treatment plan before your first dose, and most services accept self-referrals, so you can phone them directly.

Filter by medication and setting, phone the service to confirm details before you travel, and treat every listing as a record to check, not a recommendation.

Methadone is taken daily under supervision at a clinic, while buprenorphine is often taken at home after the first doses, and the right choice depends on your health and history, so a clinician should decide with you.

Take-home doses let stable clients take methadone or buprenorphine at home instead of attending daily, and each programme sets its own criteria, so ask the clinic what counts as stable there.

In the US, clinicians can start buprenorphine over telehealth, including audio-only visits, under a permanent federal rule, while other countries set their own rules, so confirm with a local prescriber.

Bring photo ID, a list of every medicine you take, your health or insurance card, and a way to contact you, and phone ahead because each service asks for slightly different papers.