202,000 people went through drug treatment last year....how many came out drug free??

According to the statistics publishes by the The National Treatment Agency (NTA) in their annual report7.324... That is just 3.6%.

So what is happening here? It seems confusing that I always hear that local treatment centres are much more successful.

It depends of your idea of success! most treatment centres call success the completion of a stay in a centre - many have no follow up of clients as they are too difficult to track once they leave. Some stay in treatment, but are just permanently moved onto a substitute like methadone which has many of its own problems.

This type of treatment is about harm reduction rather than abstinence and not what the public is expecting when agencies talk about treatment. Don't we want people to be free from drugs and able to lead happy and productive lives? and for treatment centres to be clear about their purpose and accountable to their customers and their local community?