Drug Abuse

Prescription drug abuse has come to be one of the most overexposed – and over-glamorized – problems in American pop culture today. The public goes crazy for tales of scandal and ruination in a rich and famous person’s life – maybe it’s because we’re jealous. Or maybe we’re just so detached from famous people that it’s like watching hamsters in a cage.

The other aspect of pop culture where prescription drug use reigns as a supreme form of entertainment is primetime television – wildly popular programs like House, M.D. and Nurse Jackie, protagonized by drug-addicted medical professionals, glamorize prescription drug abuse almost to the point of being “cool,” and while shows like A&E’s Intervention highlight the dark side of addiction it’s still just drug abuse as entertainment.

If we can detach ourselves from the detachment – that is, if we can realize that the celebrities are real people, the TV characters are not, but both have a real problem – we can take an important lesson from the glamorization of prescription drug use in American pop culture: be careful. Be careful with how much you take, how often you take it, and when you take it. Don’t give your prescription medication to anyone else, and always consult with your doctor about appropriate amounts for your level of pain.

In the wake of widespread prescription medication use, many physicians and pain clinics are implementing medication management programs – a way to manage chronic pain with fewer or no painkilling drugs. Aside from being often far more effective at reducing pain, these techniques eliminate the side effects of prescription painkillers as well as the risk of dependency and overdose. For Twin Cities residents with chronic pain or in need of a physical therapist Minneapolis center Twin Cities Pain Clinic provides a number of treatment options – along with experience, expertise, and the care and supervision of an M.D. Dedicated to finding the least invasive and most effective pain management technique for each patient, Medical Director Dr. Andrew Will and staff use the most advanced and up-to date research to provide an enormous range of physical therapy, spinal intervention, and medication management services.

One such innovative service is the intrathecal pain pump – a two-part medication delivery system implanted in a subcutaneous pocket of the skin and the intrathecal space of the spine. The system is set by medical staff to deliver either a constant stream of medication or variable “boosts” of it via remote control when the patient needs it most – and no more than a certain amount every day. And one of the best features? The intrathecal pain pump system delivers an appropriate dose of pain medication to the place it’s needed – without the drugs affecting the rest of the body. Because there are no external parts, the system does not normally interfere with daily activities, and a physician can adjust the dosage non-invasively if necessary.

“Chronic pain” is only one problem in a larger issue – tangled up in a web of pills and side effects and addiction, recognizing that what’s most common and most popular isn’t always the best option is the first step in thinking about chronic pain management in a new way – and regaining the control over your body that you had before.

Prescription Drug Abuse: Local Doctor Suspended for Prescription Drug Abuse

A local doctor got his license suspended, after the Texas Medical Board found that he had over 100 bottles of prescription drugs in his possession. The board said Mauricio Ernesto Jimenez, who has an office in West El Paso, admitted to pre-signing the prescriptions. The board also said Jimenez threatened an employee with violence, if she refused to get the prescriptions filled for him. Newschannel 9 stopped by the office today, which was still open, but the employees refused to talk to us.
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Prescription Drug Abuse: Report: More than 100 million suffer lasting pain
WASHINGTON — Nearly a third of Americans experience long-lasting pain – the kind that lingers for weeks to months – and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a health care system poorly prepared to treat them, the Institute of Medicine said We…
Read more on The Charleston Gazette

Prescription Drug Abuse: Report: More than 100 million suffer lasting pain
WASHINGTON (AP) – Nearly a third of Americans experience long-lasting pain – the kind that lingers for weeks to months – and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a health care system poorly prepared to treat them, the Institute of Medicine said Wednesday.
Read more on KMIR 6 Palm Springs

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