The collateral damage of the war on opiods: The chronic pain patient.
The "war on opioids" has now become the "war on chronic pain patients", and Pain Management Doctors. If you are a hammer, everything is a nail, and this is what is going on. Not all chronic pain patients are addicts, and not all doctors run pill mills. Men and women with chronic pain are people you know, not junkies. These men and women have various traumas which cause them to experience severe chronic pain daily, which is much different that acute pain, it does not go away. This pain robs them of their lives, causing divorce, loss of employment, depression, and many times the will to live. Opioids are the only thing that works for many of these men and women. Most have tried and failed more conservative treatments.
Recently, a doctor from NJ, who I have known for years, was targeted by the state of NJ for treating a non cancer patient with subsys. His license was suspended for treating severe pain with a medication designed for severe pain. Pain does not know the difference between nerve damage or cancer, both can cause hideous pain. Ponder the worst pain you have ever experienced, now imagine having that pain day in and day out. This perspective will give you some idea of the daily life of a patient with severe chronic pain. What research shows is addiction is rare in true chronic pain patients, and when/if the pain is cured, they cease opioid therapy. It is true, as well, that there are patients out there who sell and abuse their medication, however, are we to punish and ignore those with real pain? Are we to take away their families, livelihood, self esteem, and their basic desire to find love and joy in life? For many this is exactly what is happening, their doctors are harassed, suspended, and shut down. Many doctors are afraid to prescribe pain medication now, even to patients who clearly need it. The new victims of this war on opioids is disabled chronic pain patients.
There is now a reactive witch hunt against pain management doctors and their patients. A patient is referred to pain management doctors when the patient fails to respond to conservative therapies. Are these people not privy to a life without severe pain? Should they be treated like junkies and their doctors drug dealers? Are these men and women an acceptable collateral risk in the war? These are your mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters not junkies seeking a fix. Please, lets take a moment, and look clearly at this situation. Lets look at the research, and listen to the patients and doctors who battle chronic pain on a daily basis. Things have been changing for the better in the past few years in the fight against opioid abuse; things will not magically get better by indiscriminately targeting anyone who takes or prescribes pain medication. This will take time. For example, pill mills have been closed, monitoring systems are now in place to reveal doctor shopping and over prescribing, emergency rooms are now restricted when prescribing, and the days of relaxed opioid protocol are long over. In this process, we need to pause for a minute, and ensure chronic pain patients have a voice in this process. Lets ensure they don't become the victims of a well-meaning but, reactive movement which propagates the further suffering of this group of disabled Americans. We can do better than this!
Recently, a doctor from NJ, who I have known for years, was targeted by the state of NJ for treating a non cancer patient with subsys. His license was suspended for treating severe pain with a medication designed for severe pain. Pain does not know the difference between nerve damage or cancer, both can cause hideous pain. Ponder the worst pain you have ever experienced, now imagine having that pain day in and day out. This perspective will give you some idea of the daily life of a patient with severe chronic pain. What research shows is addiction is rare in true chronic pain patients, and when/if the pain is cured, they cease opioid therapy. It is true, as well, that there are patients out there who sell and abuse their medication, however, are we to punish and ignore those with real pain? Are we to take away their families, livelihood, self esteem, and their basic desire to find love and joy in life? For many this is exactly what is happening, their doctors are harassed, suspended, and shut down. Many doctors are afraid to prescribe pain medication now, even to patients who clearly need it. The new victims of this war on opioids is disabled chronic pain patients.
There is now a reactive witch hunt against pain management doctors and their patients. A patient is referred to pain management doctors when the patient fails to respond to conservative therapies. Are these people not privy to a life without severe pain? Should they be treated like junkies and their doctors drug dealers? Are these men and women an acceptable collateral risk in the war? These are your mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters not junkies seeking a fix. Please, lets take a moment, and look clearly at this situation. Lets look at the research, and listen to the patients and doctors who battle chronic pain on a daily basis. Things have been changing for the better in the past few years in the fight against opioid abuse; things will not magically get better by indiscriminately targeting anyone who takes or prescribes pain medication. This will take time. For example, pill mills have been closed, monitoring systems are now in place to reveal doctor shopping and over prescribing, emergency rooms are now restricted when prescribing, and the days of relaxed opioid protocol are long over. In this process, we need to pause for a minute, and ensure chronic pain patients have a voice in this process. Lets ensure they don't become the victims of a well-meaning but, reactive movement which propagates the further suffering of this group of disabled Americans. We can do better than this!
View Comments