Technical gaps cripple biometric system at Punjab’s opioid treatment centres

Rolled out over a year ago to verify patients’ identities and curb the pilferage of buprenorphine tablets, the biometric attendance system at Outpatient Opioid-Assisted Treatment (OOAT) centres in Punjab is still battling teething problems in the absence of basic technical infrastructure.

Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist medicine distributed at over 540 OOAT centres to treat opioid dependence among drug addicts by suppressing cravings and preventing withdrawal symptoms.