Opioids And Drug Addiction

The United States currently faces an unprecedented epidemic of opioid addiction. This includes painkillers, heroin, and other drugs made from the same base chemical. In the couple of years, approximately one out of twenty Americans reported misuse or abuse of prescriptions painkillers. Heroin abuse and overdoses are on the rise and are the leading cause of injury deaths, surpassing car accidents and gun shots. The current problem differs from the opioid addiction outbreaks of the past in that it is also predominant in the middle and affluent classes. Ultimately, anyone can be fighting a battle with addiction and it is important for family members and loved ones to know the signs. The cause for this epidemic is that the current spike of opioid abuse can be traced to two decades of increased prescription rates for painkillers by well-meaning physicians.

Many people consider New Hanover County as a nice place to live. The website 10Best.com recently selected the waterfront in downtown Wilmington as the best American waterfront. However, all nice places have issues under the surface just like alligators living under the surface of the water in the Cape Fear River. The wicked problem facing New Hanover County is the opioid epidemic. Many communities across the United States share in this struggle. Over two million people become dependent on prescription pain pills and street opioids every year in the United States . Of those addicted, the deaths because of a heroin overdose have increased 533% between 2002 and 2016 in the United States. If the opioid crisis

According to NIH, millions of people suffer from opioid use disorder throughout the United States. This epidemic has continued to spread and the numbers of people who are becoming addicted is on the rise so much that the total burden of cost is at 78.5 billion dollars per year for prescription opioid misuse, this includes the cost of addiction treatment, criminal justice services, and health care (NIH, 2017. https://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/opioids/opioid-crisis) Unfortunately there does not seem to be an end to this epidemic anytime soon. The numbers are unremarkable; natural and semi-synthetic opioids peeked at 14,427, heroin at 15,446 and synthetic opioids other than methadone at 20,145. That is a total of 50,018 deaths for some type

Health care providers have a great responsibility treating individuals with various medical conditions to ensure positive patient outcomes related to physical and psychological functioning. The most common condition patients seek treatment for is chronic pain and the most common location for treatment is the emergency department (ED). In addition, nurse practitioners are the most likely providers of care and often responsible for millions of Americans yearly in the ED (Balestra, 2016). Approximately 51% of ED visits in 2010 were for pain related complaints and 31% of the visits resulted in opioid prescriptions (Bohnert et al., 2016). This requires the nurse practitioner to be knowledgeable of resources to assist in making clinical decisions

Opioid abuse is a crisis that is plaguing America, in 2015 there we an estimated 15,000 deaths due to prescription opioids*. People are dying, and families are being ripped apart, a radical change needs to occur in order to save lives. Although there are many ways to attempt to solve this problem, here are three solutions that could potentially save lives; decriminalize all drugs, limit prescribed painkillers, and provide access to Narcan (naloxone).

Opiate addiction can cause many negative changes in the brain. This leads to the structure and functioning of the brain to perform lower than usual. As a result of constant consumption of the opiate medications, addicts lose most of their ability to cope with pain naturally without taking use of pain medication (Torres, 2014). This low tolerance of pain leads to the addict experiencing a higher level of pain since they consistently have high levels of opiates in their system (Torres, 2014). Opiates have the ability to produce withdrawal symptoms in a few hours after the last dose (Opiate Withdrawal Timelines, Symptoms and

For thousands of years, opiates have been used in the treatment of pain. Opium is believed to have been discovered 6000 BC, and since then, it has had a huge impact on both medicine and the recreations of those seeking euphoria. More recent than the ancient discovery of natural opium are the derivatives of opium, such as the alkaloids morphine, codeine, and thebaine. From these alkaloids, semi-synthetic opiates can by synthesized, such as hydrocodone, and oxycodone. Synthetic opioids are also quite prevalent, which include fentanyl and tramadol. Opium can also be processed into heroin, a morphine derivative. As advancements were made in science and engineering to allow for a wider distribution and usage of opiates, the problems of dependence and overdose also increased drastically. According to Hart and Ksir (2013, p. 302), the invention of the hypodermic needle for intravenous administration of morphine and other drugs allowed for a much faster and more potent dose of the drug. With this increased potency came an increase in the possibility of a recreational intravenous user to overdose. Hart also mentions that some of the wars surrounding the era of the synthesis of morphine may have contributed to the rise of morphine, seeing as a medic soldier’s motto was always “first provide relief” (2013). This relief-driven attitude and extensive use of opioid analgesics in medicine during the time, in addition to the large amount of patent medicines and remedies on the market may

SOURCE: “F.D.A. to Expand Medication-Assisted Therapy for Opioid Addicts,” Sheila Kaplan, The New York Times Company, February 25, 2018.

Opioid addiction with prescribed and illegal substances has of late become a topic of concern within the United States. With this topic in the face of individual liberties, one must question the moral and legal obligations of society and of the government to control this outbreak of addiction. With one view, the side that would be in favor of Plato, one could argue that the use of any substance illegally is morally wrong and that people waste their lives if they even try opioids for something other than their intended purposes. On the other side, with the view of John Stuart Mill, one could argue that while the use of opioids could be considered wrong, government and society are not at right to prohibit individuals from using opioids, given several underlying assumptions. Of these two views, I argue that, while I agree partially with Plato, I agree more with Mill’s view that individuals should be allowed to use opioids if they so wish.

Prescription opioid misuse has emerged as a significant public health issue in the United States. Since the late 1990s, nationwide sales of prescription opioids have risen 4-fold, and with this, the rate of admissions for substance use treatment and the rate of death from opioid overdose have grown proportionately.1

Summary: The video and associated article are primarily the first-hand account of an opioid addict who had attempted to detox alone unsuccessfully and then found medical assistance. Aside from the first-hand account the information mentioned in the video and article is insinuated to be from University of Kansas Health System Addiction Center and their staff. The link to the addiction center is provided and for further resources the audience is directed to another webpage on KMBC for other withdrawal and treatment centers. The audience of this news segment is those suffering from opioid addiction and their family members. The segment is also targeted in combination with a series other articles sharing the same overall title “State of Addiction” at the local community to create awareness of opioid addiction. The video expressed a tone of hope

both the beneficial effects, and the undesirable side effects. Opioids are classified in to natural opiates, semi synthetic opiates, fully synthetic opiates, and endogenous opioid peptides. The three receptors found in the body are delta, mu, and kappa.

Today I visited a treatment facility in Dayton OH. On James H Mcgee Blvd. This is a methadone based facility that has more than 800 clients currently receiving a daily regime of methadone; this is an agonist substance used in the treatment of opiate addiction. My interview today is with Lakisha Russell, a Licensed Social Worker: she also carries a MHT degree and a LCDC III. Furthermore acquiring a portion of this education at Sinclair.

Opiate addiction is an intricate part of the history here in the United States and globally. It is a cycle of abuse, misinformation, medical discovery, pain, and death that spans generations. While many naively believe that this type of addiction is unique to the late 20th and 21st century, it is one that our ancestors battled. Among laymen and physicians, there is a mixture of misunderstanding about what this type of addiction is and how it, not only, stems from the nature of opiates but the psychological factors behind this type of disease. Opioid and Heroin addiction are treatable with a combination of chemical treatment and counseling. Having worked in a Methadone clinic that specialized in this specific combination treatment that required

You likely purchased this book because you or someone you care about is struggling with addiction. I suspect you are searching for help but don’t know where to find guidance based on reliable scientific principles. The information in this book will provide that guidance.