Posts Tagged ‘pain’
Beyond Midterms
What’s Next? Midterms are behind us. You may be pleased or displeased with the results. Either way, the newly elected, and the reelected, senators and members of congress will now determine healthcare policy. They will take office in January. In the meantime, do your homework. When you’re worried that your doctor might be pressured to…
Read MoreGet Out to Vote
Vote to Change Healthcare Policies Mid-term elections are approaching. If you have the ability to vote, then this is a chance to help determine the direction of our healthcare policies. There are many issues important to each of us. To people who follow my blog, the most important healthcare issues have to do with how…
Read MoreWounded Healer
My Review of Drug Dealer MD: How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked and Why It’s So Hard to Stop, a Book by Anna Lembke, M.D. In Drug Dealer MD: How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked and Why It’s So Hard to Stop, Anna Lembke, M.D. offers her views on how a failed health care system created the…
Read MoreMarijuana and Pain
Marijuana May Help Solve the Opioid Crisis The opioid crisis is a complex problem with many components, one of which is untreated pain. To the extent that it could be used to help patients manage pain, marijuana might have the potential to become part of the solution. However, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has…
Read MoreUtah Opioid Crisis Summit
University of Utah’s Summit Addressed State’s Opioid Problem On April 23, 2018, the University of Utah’s summit convened to discuss how to solve the state’s opioid problem. The summit’s goal was to identify barriers faced by health care providers and others in providing effective treatment of pain and addiction. The participants’ diverse professional backgrounds provided…
Read MoreFamily of Pain
Failing to Understand the Experience of Pain Most people in pain do not like talking about their pain problem with others. When they do mention it to friends and family, they generally are disappointed at the responses. People are well intended, at least initially, but they can be insensitive. Fundamentally, they fail to understand what…
Read MoreThe Tribune was wrong. Medicine often involves a risk to the patient.
Please note: This version of the blog originally appeared as an op-ed in the Salt Lake City Tribune on December 10, 2017. The Tribune was wrong. Medicine often involves a risk to the patient. The Salt Lake Tribune published an editorial on Sunday Nov 12, 2017, “Medical professionals need to play a role in opioid crisis.” The…
Read MoreWhat Is a Human Life Worth?
This article first appeared in the 11/29/2017 edition of The Hill. President’s Council of Economic Advisers Calculate the Value of a Human Life President Trump has declared the opioid crisis to be a national health emergency and appears to be developing the rationale for funding interventions to combat the program. The first step is to…
Read MoreRevealing the Hidden Pain Crisis
Our Perception of Pain Depends on Time and Culture Pain seems universal and irrefutable. Surprisingly, though, our perception and treatment of pain have always depended on time and culture. Currently, pain isn’t considered to be as important as the opioid crisis. The voices of people in pain are often ignored. Sometimes, those who have pain…
Read MoreWays to Help a Recovering Senior Addict Parent from a Distance
Photo via Pixabay By Marie Villeza, Guest Columnist When your senior parent is fighting addiction in a recovery treatment center, and you live far away, it becomes difficult to identify what you can do to help her. Recognized as an “invisible epidemic,” many relatives of seniors hooked on drugs or alcohol first have problems accepting…
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