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Lately, many medical studies have been released which have stated that as the
median age of the American people increases, so shall the percentage of
Americans that are living regularly with chronic pain. Some of those
studies will be cited here soon. Unfortunately, these same studies
conclude that pain in America is being woefully under treated.
Much of this has to do with the very realistic fear that doctors who prescribe
strong pain medicine as a course of therapy are subject to undue scrutiny from
the Drug Enforcement Administration. Most
people no doubt believe that the DEA's main role in America should be
enforcement of laws that prevent illegal drugs with no medical purpose from
causing further destruction in America. Drugs in this category would
include cocaine, methamphetamine, ecstasy and a bunch of others. A good
argument could be made to exclude marijuana and a few others, but that debate is
for a different page. The DEA should NOT be interfering with the
legitimate treatment of patients by licensed doctors who try to ease the
suffering of those with varying degrees of pain. Yet if you read recent
media reports, you will see that of late there seems to be a targeted
campaign against doctors, pharmacies and the services who treat chronic
pain patients properly and with compassion. Most people would agree
that although certain medications containing narcotic substances can be abused
by some, that should not prevent people with legitimate need from obtaining
these medications when warranted.
In my personal experience, I have had doctors comment almost apologetically
after painful surgical procedures that they feared prescribing sufficient
amounts of medication lest they invite an investigation by the DEA. Doctors
realize that such scrutiny of their prescribing patterns includes the very real
possibility that their livelihoods and even their freedom might be
jeopardized. No one should be made to suffer needlessly because of this
lack of distinction between those who need pain medications so that they may
live a life with quality vs. that small minority who are unfortunately addicted
to certain drugs for which they have no medical need.
Possibly because of our puritanical heritage in America, there seems to be a
sense that pain and suffering should be an ordinary part of life and to find
adequate relief from chronic pain somehow involves "escaping" a
reality that we should be made to face. Many other industrialized
countries have no such notion inherent in their culture and relatively strong
pain medications are available over the counter in pharmacies for those who need
them. These countries also generally have lower rates of drug abuse than
those found in America for that matter. Over time, I will compile
statistics and sources to back up these assertions.
One result of this prohibition against pain relief has been the proliferation of
Online Medical Providers. One must face facts and realize that all these
businesses came into being because they realized that a strong market existed
for their services and while altruism may figure somewhat into their entering
this market, profit also is a strong motivator. However, that is how
capitalism operates, the very basic rule of supply and demand. If
Telemedicine Providers are hounded out of existence by overzealous DEA
offensives, then a very ugly black market will emerge to take its place.
As it stands currently, Telemedicine Providers which are operating openly can be
subject to the necessary oversight by the AMA and FDA, the two organizations
which should control quality of medical care, not the Drug Enforcement
Administration.
Telemedicine got an early black eye because of a "Wild West" atmousphere that existed when the possibility of offering medication through the Internet brought out many entities who admittedly didn't have the best interest of consumers in mind. To this day you get endless spam, none of it coming from the sort of Online Consultation Services that we strive to preserve for the true chronic pain patient.
The OCS still has some work to do to improve its public perception.
We've culled a lot of ideas from the methods practiced by the most respectable
organizations. Soon we will publish what in our opinion should be guidelines
that all Online Consultation Services should abide by.
You should keep these issues in perspective and recognize that Telemedicine
Providers are going through the growing pains that any new business model on the
internet faces. It was just a few years ago, when any surfer young or old,
could submit an innocent query to a search engine and have blatant pornographic
sites returned as the top results because at that time it was still easy to fool
the search engine logic. Those problems have all but disappeared and the
Telemedicine models mentioned positively on these pages will set the gold
standard for the promising future that Telemedicine holds..
Speaking of perspective, for all our self pity over the
inconsistent medical treatment options available in America, we should not
forget that by the overall world standards, Americans are living in the most
fortunate nation on the planet for innumerable reasons. In so many parts of the
world, children die daily of diarrhea for lack of fifty cents worth of
antibiotics. For that reason, please consider donating to organizations
like the IRC - International Rescue Committee 2 which
helps folks in need throughout the world. In fact, at IRC, you can request
that your donations be used to fill a specific need or help a specific area.
As we hope you will note, Telemedicine.4mg strives to maintain an honest site
for information on Telemedicine, stressing content over fancy presentations. Our
site will continue to grow as more information relevant to this topic becomes
available.
Another item which people should look
at in perspective, what is the most insidious drug available in America?
The drug that causes the most social havoc, the most health problems and
crime? Even pain medication abusers do not cause anywhere near the grief
to their families and society that those addicted to alcohol do. Why are
we so concerned with pain sufferers having access to medication that improve
their quality of life when anyone who wishes to can buy 10 quarts of scotch a
day and completely destroy their lives and the lives of their families?
I recently read an all too familiar story in a New York City newspaper. A
quiet man who had a 20 year job history at the same job shared his apartment
with a mother and her daughter strictly so they could afford the exorbitant
rents required to live in so many areas today. One day, he inexplicably
went into a rage over his belief that the month's electric bill was not being
split fairly. The man felt that since his roommate's daughter was now
using a computer, her mother should contribute an extra $3.00 or so toward the
electric bill. They had an argument that culminated with the man stabbing
both the mother and daughter to death. Several hours later, before the
bodies were found, the man walked into the police precinct and said to the desk
officer, "I think I did something horrible....".
Now what caused this man to suddenly snap after an otherwise law abiding
lifetime? He could have had a latent mental illness or perhaps a brain
tumor caused him to snap. It's possible but not that likely. It's
just as unlikely that he consumed a strong pain reliever and found himself
committing multiple murder. It's also unlikely that he smoked marijuana
and went into the rage. The most likely answer and I would bet on this, he
drank a couple of pints of wine or liquor, purchased legally and without any
scrutiny and went into an uncontrollable rage. Yet we hear no outcry over
alcohol because of this. I'm not even suggesting that there should be such
an outcry, but a reasonable argument could be made for more control over alcohol
purchases. I certainly would never want to see alcohol completely
banned. I've thrown a few back myself over the years!
Corrrection: There is Now a Worse Drug - Meth, But This Is Who the DEA Shuts Down
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None of the information offered on these pages or any pages that we link to is intended to take the place of your doctor's advice. If you are suffering from any ailment or symptom which has not been effectively diagnosed, please seek medical attention promptly. It could save your life!
