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Ms. Nabi
Pharmacist
Pain
Management:
Are Patients Suffering Because of Strict
Regulations?
"Opiophobia"
is a term coined by clinicians who believe patients in America
are suffering pain needlessly.
Prescribers with opiophobia fear patient addiction, societal and regulatory censure, and diversion of drugs to the street.
Are patients in pain casualties of the "War on Drugs?" Or
is the current restrictive policy justified?
The United States' consumption of 1,339 defined daily doses
(30 mg/dose) of medical morphine per million inhabitants is in
the midrange compared to other countries.
According to the United Nations' International Narcotics Control
Board (INCB), morphine use is higher in Sweden where the average
daily consumption is 2,348 doses and in the UK, which consumes
2,224 doses. However, other countries -- for example, Germany, with 276
doses, and The Netherlands, at 667 doses -- consume considerably
less than the US.
Both national and international healthcare organizations,
however, seem to be recommending more liberal use of opiates in
pain management:
- The American Medical Association's "Aspects of Pain Management
in Adults," recommends efforts to loosen restrictive controlled
substance regulations.
- World Health Organization guidelines propose a 3-step analgesic
ladder that recommends morphine for chronic pain and cites studies
that refute any relationship between narcotic-induced deaths
and the ease of obtaining prescriptions for medical use.
- The American...»»
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Suggested Reading
Prescription
Drug Abuse
Synopsis:
Colvin was motivated to write this book when his brother died
after several years of abusing prescribed tranquilizers and sedatives.
He defines the problem, gives reasons for it, lists the most frequently
abused substances, and relates anecdotes describing unwitting addicts.
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