Circular No. 18/2021/TT-BYT stipulates diagnostic criteria and professional procedures to determine drug addiction status

CIRCULAR

Regulations on diagnostic criteria and professional procedures
to determine drug addiction status

THE MINISTER OF HEALTH

Pursuant to the Law on Diagnosis and Treatment No. 40/2009/QH12 dated November 23, 2009;

Pursuant to Decree No. 88/2020/NĐ-CP dated July 28, 2020 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of some provisions of the Labor Safety and Health Law on mandatory work injury and occupational disease insurance;drug number 73/2021/QH14 dated March 30, 2021;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 75/2017/NĐ-CP dated June 20, 2017 stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Health;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment;

The Minister of Health issues this Circular prescribing diagnostic criteria and professional procedures to determine drug addiction status.diagnosn and professional procedures to determine drug addiction status.về ma túy.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular prescribes diagnostic criteria and professional procedures to determine drug addiction status for individuals specified in Clause 1, Article 27 of the Law on Prevention and Control of Drugs 2021.

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to agencies, organizations, and individuals related to determining drug addiction status.

Article 3. Diagnostic criteria for drug addiction status

1. Diagnostic criteria for drug addiction status include the following six criteria:

a) Criterion 1: Strong desire or compulsive need to use drugs;

b) Criterion 2: Difficulty in controlling drug use behaviors regarding start time, end time, or level of use;

c) Criterion 3: Tolerance to drugs;

d) Criterion 4: Increasing indifference towards other interests or hobbies due to drug use;

đ) Criterion 5: Continued use of drugs despite knowing harmful consequences of drug use;

e) Criterion 6: Presence of withdrawal symptoms when stopping or reducing drug use.

2. Determining specific drug withdrawal symptoms shall be carried out according to the Guidelines for Determining Specific Drug Withdrawal Symptoms prescribed in Appendix No. 01 attached hereto. Determining Criteria Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 6 for diagnosing drug addiction status shall be carried out according to the Guidelines prescribed in Appendix No. 02 attached hereto.

3. Determining diagnostic criteria for drug addiction status shall be based on clinical observation results, information obtained from the individual whose drug addiction status needs to be determined or accompanying person (if any), and files provided by the police agency.

4. An individual diagnosed as having drug addiction status shall have at least three out of the six criteria stipulated in Clause 1, Article 3 of this Circular occurring simultaneously for at least one month, or if they exist for a shorter period than one month, they must recur simultaneously within twelve months.

Article 4. Professional procedures to determine drug addiction status

1. Step 1. Receiving the individual and collecting relevant information of the individual whose drug addiction status needs to be determined.

2. Step 2: Conducting medical examination, clinical observation, recording information in the medical record and Summary Form to determine drug addiction status prescribed in Appendix No. 03 attached hereto.

3. Step 3: Recording conclusions

a) In case there is only one criterion of drug addiction status or two criteria of drug addiction status including Criterion 6, record the conclusion "not addicted to drugs" on the Summary Form to determine drug addiction status and immediately provide the result of determining drug addiction status as prescribed in Article 5 of this Circular.

b) In case there are at least three criteria of drug addiction status, record the conclusion "addicted to drugs" on the Summary Form to determine drug addiction status and immediately provide the result of determining drug addiction status as prescribed in Article 5 of this Circular.

c) In case there are two criteria of drug addiction status, excluding Criterion 6 or signs of drug addiction status are not clear, follow Step 4 as prescribed in Clause 4 of this Article.

4. Step 4: Conducting medical examination, clinical observation, recording information and conclusions in the medical record and various Observation Forms in cases prescribed in Point c, Clause 3 of this Article:

a) Order and immediately conduct medical examination and clinical observation to determine drug addiction status;

b) Conduct medical examination and record the medical record;

c) Monitor and record the Summary Form to determine drug addiction status and various Observation Forms to determine withdrawal status of each type of drug, including: Observation Form to determine withdrawal status of opiate-type drugs according to the model prescribed in Appendix No. 04; Observation Form to determine withdrawal status of stimulant-type drugs (amphetamine-type, cocaine-type or other stimulants) according to the model prescribed in Appendix No. 05 and Observation Form to determine withdrawal status of cannabis according to the model prescribed in Appendix No. 06 attached hereto;

d) Record the conclusion "has withdrawal status of drugs" or "does not have withdrawal status of drugs" on the Observation Forms to determine withdrawal status of each type of drug. The conclusion about withdrawal status of drugs shall be summarized in the Summary Form to determine drug addiction status;

đ) Record the conclusion about drug addiction status on the Summary Form to determine drug addiction status and the medical record. If there are at least three criteria of drug addiction status, conclude "addicted to drugs." If there are fewer than three criteria of drug addiction status or the diagnostic criteria are not clearly manifested due to insufficient time, conclude "not addicted to drugs." Immediately provide the result of determining drug addiction status as prescribed in Article 5 of this Circular.

5. During the process of determining drug addiction status, if the individual has withdrawal symptoms, mental disorders, and accompanying diseases, they shall be examined and treated according to current regulations on medical examination and treatment.

Article 5. Issuing the results of determining drug addiction status

1. Record the results on the Drug Addiction Status Determination Result Form in accordance with the conclusion of the drug addiction status on the Summary Observation Form to determine the drug addiction status.

2. The results of determining the drug addiction status shall be delivered to the person who voluntarily requests the determination of the drug addiction status or to the police agency requesting the determination of the drug addiction status within five days from the date of receiving the person needing to determine the drug addiction status.

Article 6. Implementation Organization

1. Responsibilities of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management:

a) Directing, guiding, disseminating, inspecting, and supervising the implementation of this Circular;

b) Organizing specialized training on diagnosing the drug addiction status for provincial and municipal health departments (hereinafter referred to as Health Departments) and healthcare facilities.

2. Responsibilities of the Department of Health:

a) Directing, guiding, disseminating, inspecting, and supervising the implementation of this Circular for healthcare facilities under its management;

b) Organizing specialized training on diagnosing the drug addiction status for healthcare facilities and doctors performing the determination of the drug addiction status;

c) Reporting the results of activities in determining the drug addiction status under its management.

3. Responsibilities of the Provincial and Municipal Public Security Departments:

a) Ensuring security and safety for healthcare facilities and medical staff during the process of determining the drug addiction status;

b) Directing public security agencies to provide complete files for requesting the determination of the drug addiction status in accordance with regulations;

c) Ensuring funding for the determination of the drug addiction status requested by public security agencies.

4. Responsibilities of the Health Sector: Taking the lead and coordinating with related units to organize the implementation, guide, inspect, supervise, and evaluate the implementation of this Circular within the scope of management of the Ministry and sector.

5. Responsibilities of healthcare facilities:

a) Implementing regulations on diagnostic criteria and professional procedures for determining the drug addiction status in accordance with the provisions of this Circular and related regulations;

b) Organizing, training, communicating, and disseminating regulations on determining the drug addiction status to relevant parties;

c) Organizing detoxification treatment, mental disorders, and accompanying diseases (if any) for persons needing to determine the drug addiction status during the determination period;

d) Implementing the retention of records for determining the drug addiction status in accordance with laws on medical examination and treatment;

e) Reporting the results of healthcare facility activities in determining the drug addiction status.

6. Responsibilities of individuals whose drug addiction status is determined:

a) Adhering to internal rules and regulations of healthcare facilities and medical staff during the process of determining the drug addiction status;

b) Providing truthful information about history of drug use, manifestations of drug use, and other relevant professional information during the determination of the drug addiction status.

Article 7. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2022.

2. Circular Jointly Issued No. 17/2015/TTLT-BYT-BLDTBXH-BCA dated July 9, 2015, of the Minister of Health, the Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, and the Minister of Public Security regarding the authority, procedures, and processes for determining the drug addiction status shall cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect.

Article 8. Responsibility for Implementation

The Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, the Director of the Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control, the Head of the Office of the Ministry of Health, the Inspector General of the Ministry of Health, the Heads of Departments, Directors of Bureaus, and General Directors of General Bureaus under the Ministry of Health, and related agencies, organizations, and individuals are responsible for implementing this Circular. In the course of implementing this Circular, if there are difficulties or obstacles, they are advised to report to the Ministry of Health (Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management) for consideration and resolution.

In the course of implementing this Circular, if there are difficulties or obstacles, they are advised to report to the Ministry of Health (Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management) for consideration and resolution./.