Should the "war on opiates/pain killers" be better described as "war on pain relilef"? (removed, chronic)

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by jencam

Oxy for teens for wisdom teeth removal? Madness.

I agree totally but this was about twenty years ago, when Vicodin was being handed out like candy to anyone who was in any pain apparently.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by latetotheparty

and at your patient's age..... what does it matter if she DOES become addicted?? she's not going to be out robbing people to get her fix on the street corner..... she should be kept as comfortable as possible......

I agree which is why I have no issue at all with my mother's serious pain being handled by opiates. There is a time and place for these drugs.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Annie53

Someone like my friend's mother, whom I mentioned earlier, should NOT be required to see a doctor every 5 or 7 days in order to get the pain relief they need everyday for the rest of their life. Plain and simple....it's CRUEL.

The new laws require a doctor to re evaluate the patient with chronic pain every quarter. Not every 5 to 7 days.

[sheena12]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

I agree which is why I have no issue at all with my mother's serious pain being handled by opiates. There is a time and place for these drugs.

Nor do I. My mother died in the early 1980s. She had ovarian cancer, and she was in intractable pain. She was not going to recover. Even back then, her doctors were worried about "addiction".

This whole "opiate war" really frightens me. If someone does not want to feel any pain - that should be their choice. NOT the choice of doctors or insurance companies or the "outraged" public.

When you, or a close relative are afflicted with serious and intense pain, the patient should be given the amount of analgesics needed to be free of that pain. People experience pain differently.

There are stoic types who want to "tough it out". That should be their choice. No pain relief should be forced upon anyone. Similarly, many people would like to experience as little pain as is possible. Their wishes should also be honored.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by sheena12

Nor do I. My mother died in the early 1980s. The had ovarian cancer, and she was in intractable pain. She was not going to recover. Even back then, her doctors were worried about "addiction".

This whole "opiate war" really frightens me. If someone does not want to feel any pain - that should be their choice. NOT the choice of doctors or insurance companies or the "outraged" public.

When you, or a close relative are afflicted with serious and intense pain, the patient should be given the amount of analgesics needed to be free of that pain. People experience pain differently.

There are stoic types who want to "tough it out". That should be their choice. No pain relief should be forced upon anyone. Similarly, many people would like to experience as little pain as is possible. Their wishes should also be honored.

I agree to some extent but honestly, doesn't the rate of opiate prescriptions and opiate addiction and overdose in this country concern you? It does me. There's a middle ground somewhere in my opinion and we need to find it.

My grandmother died of bone cancer in 2000. Her doctors were not ever worried one iota about addiction. And then she died - and someone stole her meds from my parents' house. So someone was addicted.

[sheena12]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

I agree to some extent but honestly, doesn't the rate of opiate prescriptions and opiate addiction and overdose in this country concern you? It does me. There's a middle ground somewhere in my opinion and we need to find it.

My grandmother died of bone cancer in 2000. Her doctors were not ever worried one iota about addiction. And then she died - and someone stole her meds from my parents' house. So someone was addicted.

I think it's over blown. I know it exists, but I tend to be libertarian when it comes to drug use. I wish that people so inclined woud have access to the drugs that they want. That's their choice. There are people who are prone to addiction and those who are not.

People with terminal cancer who are 5'5" and 76 lbs. are really at no risk of developing an addiction. A habituation? Possibly. (there is a difference) However, what is worse? Needing an opiate dosage to alleviate pain - or going without pain medication because some people are prone to addiction?

Your grandmother's doctors seem more progressive than my mother's were. My mom's doctor, seemed to have misplaced concerns. Addiction vs. pain is an easy choice for me. I am an RN, inactive by choice. I have seen nurses willfully withhold pain and anxiety medication from patients because THEY were not sure that the patient needed pain relief. Some were outspoken and said that the patient should "suck it up".

Seriously? Suck it up?

That should be the patient's choice. In terms of "street drugs" and addiction, this is a really a different issue. I think the propensity for drug use is an enigma. I don't know the solution. I only know that people who are in pain deserve pain relief for the duration of their suffering.

[Annie53]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

The new laws require a doctor to re evaluate the patient with chronic pain every quarter. Not every 5 to 7 days.

In Ohio most pain prescriptions are limited to a 5-7 day supply. Need more? Back to the doctor.

https://www.cleveland.com/metro/inde...imits_set.html

Ohio doctors, dentists and other health professionals will be able to prescribe only up to seven days of painkillers for adults and five days for kids and teens under new rules announced Thursday.

The limits apply to acute pain patients, with exceptions for cancer, hospice or medication-assisted addiction patients. Prescribers can override the limits if they provide a specific reason in the patient's medical record.

[Annie53]

Originally Posted by jencam

Oxy for teens for wisdom teeth removal? Madness.

I had my wisdom teeth removed when I was 25.....40 years ago.

I had all 4 removed at once {so I would only need to miss work once} and two of them were impacted.

They used a little saw to cut those two out of my jaw bone.

I was given a script for narcotic pain pills and I sure as hell needed them.

.........and even with the pills I was still in pain.

If I had to have that done today with no pain pills I would be looking for something I could buy off the streets and just hope I didn't get caught.

[Annie53]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

I agree totally but this was about twenty years ago, when Vicodin was being handed out like candy to anyone who was in any pain apparently.

......and 20 years ago we didn't have people overdosing left and right like they are today.

So, what has changed?

IMO, one of the reasons is the people of today feel a greater need to escape the stresses of everyday life.

Another reason, people could get the pain relief they needed and didn't have to resort to buying unregulated street drugs that could so easily kill them.

I also question how they come up with the statistic that so many become addicted after having a legitimate script for pain relief.

For instance, let's say I have just lost my job and then had a death in the family, then I lose my house to foreclosure, next thing to go, my car. The stress starts to add up......and then one night a friend says "You should take a hit of this, you will feel so much better." ......and because I am at the end of my rope I say what the hell and give it a try, the next thing you know I am addicted.

THEN, when I end up in rehab and they ask me if I have ever had a script for a narcotic and I say yes, I had one 5 years ago after I broke my leg............do they count that as the reason I became addicted to a street drug 5 years after the fact?

I have to wonder and I will tell you why.

A friend of mine's father had Type 1 diabetes, he had lung disease caused by asbestos he breathed in on his job, {even received a monthly compensation check after a class action lawsuit}, in his late 60's he developed heart trouble and needed a defibrillator implant...........and......he was a smoker.

With all of that he was doing well, going on vacations, etc. Then one day something went wrong with the defibrillator and he had to be hospitalized to get a new one implanted.

All went well until he got a massive hospital acquired infection and that is what killed him. The doctors even told them they couldn't control the infection and he was going to die.

Did they list the infection that he got while he was still in the hospital as the primary cause of death?

Hell No. They listed smoking as his primary cause of death, a heart attack as secondary, then his diabetes.....never even mentioning the hospital acquired infection on his death certificate AT ALL. My friend was furious.

Bingo! Another death caused by smoking!

See how that kind of reporting can skew statistics?

Anyway, I think a lot of that is going on now with the reporting of legitimate pain scripts as the major cause of addiction to street drugs......highly exaggerated and deliberately taken out of context.

[annabanana123]

Originally Posted by Annie53

In Ohio most pain prescriptions are limited to a 5-7 day supply. Need more? Back to the doctor.

https://www.cleveland.com/metro/inde...imits_set.html

The key here is acute versus chronic pain. I bet the rules are more like 30-90 days for chronic.