This is regarding the article in the Sunday Monitor about opiate prescribing practices, and the pushback from prescribers who resent new regulations.
I am not a prescriber, but as a 28-year behavioral professional (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, and Master Licensed Alcohol/Drug Counselor) I have seen first-hand the process whereby a person becomes addicted to such medications following legitimate use for pain management, then turns to heroin when the medication becomes unavailable.
Three observations I submit, acknowledging they are generalizations, but largely valid:
As a society we emphasize medicinal interventions over behavioral ones such as physical therapy, nutrition, exercise and lifestyle changes;
Pharmaceutical companies, incentivized by substantial profit, have downplayed the addictive potential, and encouraged overuse of these very addictive medications. Research as to their efficacy and addictive potential is sponsored and executed by the pharmaceutical companies themselves;
Emerging research strongly indicates that long-term use of such medications (i.e., in the treatment of chronic pain) is actually counterproductive, bringing about increased sensitivity to pain over time.
The prescribing professionals have done a poor job of self-regulation, and bear a good deal of the responsibility for the pernicious damage done by overuse of these medications. Regulating prescribing practices is one step in countering the epidemic we are all so concerned about.
Mike Bradley
Hillsboro