Travis County officials have sounded a public alarm on the dangers of overdose on prescribed drugs. In the previous years, the number of deaths on controlled substances have been higher than those of illegal drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Texas has very strict laws and regulations on drugs, Period. Regardless if it is an illegal or pharmaceuticals substance . Working in a pharmacy you see all sorts of people and situations. There are those who really need their medications. There are those who abuse their medications. And there is also those simply get the medication on Medicaid, then obviously resell them to the public. I say obviously, because it is quite obvious when they come through the drive through every so often in their brand new 2011 Cadillac Escalade to pick up their narcotics. Pharmacist are often sued or get their license revoked for not catching onto potential overdose on a medication. However, I can say sometimes those potential overdoses are not visible. Patients who want to abuse their medication will do so and will find a way to their supply theri addiction. Computer systems are used in pharmacies, which will alert when it is "too soon" to refill a medication, and will not allow that pharmacy to do so. Unfortunately there is plenty of loopholes around that. The computer programs are only linked within the company, and not across the nation. One can see one doctor today and get their prescription filled at X's pharmacy. The next day the same person can go the next day to another doctor, then get his prescription filled at Y's pharmacy. Since these computer programs are not linked, it is impossible to see potential abuse, overdose or drug interaction. Perhaps the local government should create not just laws and regulations but also a system to regulates and logs the number of prescriptions received per person. In the end, I personally believe there isn't much we can do to avoid overdose. Simply inform the public of the dangers on abusing medication. If a Vicodin addict wishes to take 4 pills at once, when he was clearly instructed to only use 2 at time, he will do so. If someone is careless and doesn't read the label on a Motrin bottle stating not to use the medication along with alcohol, then that is his issue.
Jonesin for an Overdose.
ReplyDeleteIn Christian Morales's article "Vicodin is One Hell of a Drug," many loopholes in pharmaceutical prescription drugs are discussed. Apparently Travis County is pumping up its game to inform people of the dangers of overdosing on prescription drugs. Mr. Morales states that he works at a pharmacy and sees firsthand the abuse and problems with filling prescription orders. He states it is a little disturbing when you see people regularly pull up in their expensive cars to get their pain killers every two weeks (or whenever the prescription needs filled). They keep coming back due to some “pain” that they are currently undergoing. It is such an easy system to cheat by going through multiple pharmacies. Point being, it is real easy to get pharmaceutical drugs that are very popular these days. That is easy money for some people. I agree with Mr. Morales that some sort of system needs to be tied together to track all prescriptions so that they are not filled multiple times. Overdosing should not be on the doctor or pharmaceutical company. The company or doctor cannot hold the patient's hand at home and force them to take the correct or prescribed amount. The label and doctor clearly states the correct amount that is all they can do and should be accountable for. Frivolous lawsuits really piss me off. In the end, regulating drugs will always be a very difficult task at hand.