Should doctors be required to undergo special education in order to prescribe powerful narcotics?

I was just speaking to my doctor today with regards to this issue~
My doctor agrees with this ~ this is also a pressing issue in my opinion.

The Food and Drug Administration may soon recommend that they do so, though such a move would most likely prove controversial…

Dr. Rappaport said the F.D.A. was most concerned about potent and longer-acting narcotics like methadone, fentanyl and certain formulations of the drug oxycodone, the active ingredient in OxyContin.With methadone [when prescribed as a pain med], fentanyl, which is available in patches, has been associated with patient deaths and injuries resulting from physician misprescribing or inadvertent patient misuse…
In the last two years, the agency has sent out alerts to doctors about both methadone and fentanyl, but officials acknowledged that preventable patient deaths were continuing.

“We are putting out communications,” said Dr. Gerald Dal Pan, who directs the F.D.A.’s office of surveillance and epidemiology. “We don’t know why they are failing.”

We have seen “mistakes” in prescribing and talked with prescribing physicians who are very unfamiliar with proper doses and precautions with these meds (e.g. knowledge of drug-drug interactions compounding lethality), although still prescribing them.

When I say “we have seen”, I mean folks have died as a result.
The “boxed warnings” and informational mailings have failed. I think mandated training is a step in the right direction.

I will continue to ~SPEAK OUT~

Dr. Keller,

I came across a reference to a survey done by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University the other day. It is one of those “good news-bad news” bits of information.

While they have not seen an increase in drug use (that’s the good news), I found one set of findings particularly disturbing (although there was really nothing not disturbing in the findings):

For the first time in the CASA survey’s history, more teens said prescription drugs were easier to buy than beer (19 vs. 15 percent). The proportion of teens who say prescription drugs are easiest to buy jumped 46 percent since 2007 (13 vs. 19 percent). Almost half (46 percent) of teens say painkillers are the most commonly abused prescription drug among teens.

That first statement is incredible. Will this increased ease of acquiring prescription drugs to use and abuse lead to increased use in the near future? I think that it is very likely.

When teens who know prescription drug abusers were asked where those kids get their drugs:
• 31 percent said from friends or classmates;
• 34 percent said from home, parents or the medicine cabinet;
• 16 percent said other;
• Nine percent said from a drug dealer
The second listed source, in particular, should be relatively easy to control and we must get control or risk our children’s health and future.

It is easy to forget the illicit use of licit drugs in our haste to control illicit drug use, but our drug problem is a bigger problem.

Dr. Richard Keller, Lake County Coroner

I added a comment to Dr. Keller's blog -
I quoted this from the excerpt you posted Dr. Keller~

“Preventing substance abuse among teens is primarily a Mom and Pop operation,” noted Califano. “It is inexcusable, that so many parents fail to appropriately monitor their children, fail to keep dangerous prescription drugs out of the reach of their children and tolerate drug infected schools. The parents who smoke marijuana with children should be considered child abusers. By identifying the characteristics of problem parents we seek to identify actions that parents can take—and avoid—in order to become part of the solution and raise healthy, drug-free children.”

In my opinion!
Seems a great percentage of suburban parents & school system & the children themselves in my community just don't get it they seem to like to deny this entire drug issue.

YES THIS IS SO WRONG!

I do understand that an addict will do what ever it takes, lie, cheat steal, manipulate ~ to get what they want - some are predisposed to this disease ~ yes these issues start at home ~ some things are out of the control of parents, teachers & friends.

Sometimes you have to set them free to follow their own path with hopes that they make the right choices.

Great article - thank you for posting!

~4 your sister~

She has left 4 college 2 follow her journey~

~your house is a very special house~
you have left our house today ~
you have left to begin a new journey today ~
you have learned to be the survivor you are today ~
you have wisdom to know what is right from wrong ~
you have strength to confront whoever comes before you~
you have talent that will take you far~
you have confidence in who you are ~
you have the will to work hard now ~
you have courage to face fear ~
you have values to make the right choices ~
you have a future full of happiness & success ~
you have a mother and father who love you ~
you have a very special house that will always be your home ~

~we both love you~
xoxo
mom & dad
(copyright) vonna maslanka