The opioid crisis: Doctors cannot lose hope

While our elected officials in Washington spin political rhetoric and quote scary statistics around the opioid epidemic, New Jersey was one of the first states to take actual action. In February of this year,  New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal declared its plan of combat: a 24-hour response team, improvements to the prescription monitoring program, and over a million dollars in federal grants. In fact, the Office of the New Jersey Coordinator for Addiction Response and Enforcement Strategies was created to oversee the task. Other states have yet to step up to the plate. But will it have any impact? The history of opioid abuse is a long one, dating back to 3,500 BC when the Sumerians in lower Mesopotamia harvested opium, which they called “joy plant.” It first arrived in the U.S. aboard the Mayflower in 1620, and there have been spikes of addiction during times of war. Currently in the US, it is estimated that approximately 115 people die from overdoses involving opioids every single day. Approximately 21-29 percent of all patients who are prescribed opioids for pain will misuse it. Furthermore, about 8 to 12 percent will develop an opioid use disorder and 4 to 6 percent of those will move on to using IV heroin. The statistics are indeed scary. But, while politicians debate actionable solutions, doctors are seeing the very real faces of this epidemic. And that face is not a nameless statistic but rather faces of patients affected, of parents who have lost ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Meds Pain Management Primary Care Source Type: blogs