With the growth of prescription drug abuse in rural
communities, there has begun a need to figure out how to stop it. The death
toll from overdose in 2010 reach 15,000 people and it was documented that 1 in
20 people over 11 admitted to taking a painkiller for non-medical reasons. The
problem with prescription drugs is that they are difficult to control and
monitor seeing that they are meant for the medical use for the person that the
physician prescribed for. The State Senate past a Bill called “I-Stop” that allows
for real-time prescription tracking that allows practitioners and pharmacist to
follow the prescription. New York is trying to move away from paper
prescriptions and to an electronic one. It also sets up a database so that they
can easily view a patient’s controlled substance history. The Bill also proposes setting up a Safe
Disposal Program so when a patient has left over drugs, they can dispose of
them without being tempted to give them to family or friends. As drug abuse
prevalence and understanding evolves so must protocols to prevent it and so I
think that this Bill is a great step towards that.
http://northcountrynow.com/news/state-senate-passes-i-stop-reduce-prescription-drug-abuse-epidemic-059430
Electronic tracking of prescriptions is an excellent start to monitor both prescribers and their patients. While some patients truly do have chronic pain that requires narcotics there are those that abuse the system. It is hard as providers, almost impossible to tell sometimes whether a person is in such horrific pain or if they’re seeking drugs. Pain is subjective. The problem that electronic tracking cannot control is where the drugs go after they are dispensed to a certain individual. They cannot track them being let in medicine cabinets; they cannot prevent them from being sold. I’m not sure what the solution to that particular problem would be but it is certainly something to think about.
ReplyDeleteKate makes a good point above that the I-Stop program, while it may have good intentions, does not address the problem of people selling their prescription drugs to others. I found a online news article that discusses the I-Stop program. This article provides statistics on prescription drug abuse in NY, and lists the goals of the I-stop program, among them: detecting patterns of drug, or doctor "shopping" by patients, and the practice of over-prescribing of medications by doctors. If you go to the bottom of this news article, you will see several comments from readers, many of them are skeptical of the ability of the I-Stop program to solve this problem, and many readers express concern that this will prevent patients who have legitimate need for pain medications to get the drugs that they need: http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/135174/prescription-drug-bill-i-stop-passes-both-chambers/.
ReplyDeletePosted by: Carol Conolly
I think this program, despite what it may not address, is a step in the right direction. Stopping the ability of patients to move from doctor to doctor to receive this or that drug and providing safe disposal for drugs is a good start. From there, I personally feel that no law can possibly stop all illegal activities in regard to drug abuse (where there is will, there is a way, and you have to admit some people get pretty creative). It's just like gun control- most of the people that use them correctly probably go and get a permit. On the other hand the people that do use guns to commit violence probably don't have a permit and probably don't buy them from the local Bass Pro Shop, so the laws enforced don't really effect them. So its complicated. I think that the more involved communities are and the more responsibility communities take on for their problems would be more important than a law. As future medical practitioners we can promote that kind of teamwork, you know looking out for your neighbor, etc. instead of the common thinking that if it doesn't directly effect you its not your problem. The truth is its all of our problem, and if we all want a better tomorrow, then its not just a Congress' or the Mayor's job to make a difference- it's all of ours.
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