Category Archives: Prescriptions

Searching for answers ... like most problems without easy solutions, the causes of prescription drug abuse are wide ranging. Photo: Robert Banks Despite a lively public debate about illicit drugs, the dominant drugs of addiction overtaking Western societies are those prescribed legally by trusted doctors. Prescription drugs, initially given to modulate chronic pain, reduce disabling anxiety or lift fledgling moods, are most likely to become chemicals of abuse and addiction. The numbers are staggering. The National Drug Strategy household survey results in 2009 reported more than 1.2 million Australians had used a pharmaceutical drug ''for a non-medical purpose''. Advertisement: Story continues below Several experts, such as Professor Nick Lintzeris of Sydney University, believe as many as 100,000 Australians may have a problem with prescription painkillers. Prescribed opioids are fast replacing heroin, cocaine and ice as the drug of choice in the illicit markets. The estimates run even higher when it comes to abuse of anti-anxiety medications known as benzodiazepines, which include drugs such as Valium and Xanax. The prescription of Xanax, in particular, has quadrupled in the past decade, despite a study finding that it had no improved clinical efficacy, suggesting abuse is likely to be a key reason for … Continue reading →

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by KREM.com KREM.com Posted on May 30, 2012 at 10:25 AM Updated today at 11:19 AM SPOKANE--Spokane Police arrested a 45-year-old- man on May 21 just after 10pm for eluding and assaulting officers. Police say the man was intoxicated and in possession of drugs. On May 21st Sgt. Kurt Vigesaa attempted to stop a possible DUI suspect at Ash and Grace. Instead of stopping as legally required, the suspect driver accelerated in an attempt to get away. The suspect vehicle ended up going south on Ash. As the vehicle crossed the Maple Street Bridge southbound, Corporal Shane Oien was able to deploy spike strips which effectively disabled the vehicle before it entered the downtown area. Sgt Vigesaa was then able to perform a PIT maneuver, stopping the vehicle by the Rosauers parking lot at 1800 W. 2nd. The suspect exited his vehicle, then re-entered and grabbed some items inside, and then ran westbound through the parking lot. Officer Ron Van Tassel arrived on scene and he and Sgt. Vigesaa pursued the running suspect. Just as they caught up to him, the suspect stopped and began swinging at the officers, striking them each on the head. Sgt. Vigesaa and Officer Van … Continue reading →

WASHINGTON The Associated Press Published Tuesday, May. 08, 2012 1:10PM EDT Last updated Tuesday, May. 08, 2012 1:17PM EDT Federal drug regulators on Tuesday affirmed landmark study results showing that a popular HIV-fighting pill can also help healthy people avoid contracting the virus that causes AIDS in the first place. While the pill appears safe and effective for prevention, scientists stressed that it only works when taken on a daily basis. The Food and Drug Administration will hold a meeting Thursday to discuss whether Truvada should be approved for people who are at risk of contracting HIV through sexual intercourse. The agency's positive review posted Tuesday suggests the daily pill will become the first drug approved to prevent HIV infection in high-risk patients. FDA reviewers conclude that taking Truvada pre-emptively could spare patients infection with a serious and life-threatening illness that requires lifelong treatment. Despite the positive results, reviewers said that patients must be diligent about taking the pill every day. Adherence to the medication was less than perfect in clinical trials, and reviewers said that patients in the real world may forget to take their medication even more than those in clinical studies. First announced in 2010, Truvada's preventive … Continue reading →

N.H. Board of Pharmacy has temporarily suspended the state pharmacy license of Jeffrey A. Licht after an investigation found Licht was being prescribed excessive amounts of a narcotic. Licht, a registered pharmacist, worked in Pharmacy Services at Dartmouth College Health Services, according to a staff listing on the colleges website. A Dartmouth spokesman did not respond by deadline. A professional misconduct hearing is set for 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Board of Pharmacy office at 57 Regional Drive, Concord. In an order dated May 11, the Board of Pharmacy said an investigation showed Licht diverted hydrocodone/acetaminophen from Dicks House, which is part of Dartmouth College Health Services. Hydrocodone is an opiate. Reached by phone in Hanover, Licht called the charges ludicrous. I think they will be dropped out of hand, Licht said. He said he had no attorney and would represent himself at the hearing Wednesday. Im just sorry that people become guilty before there is even a hearing. I dont have anything to say about the case except that nothing in it is true, he said. The Pharmacy Boards complaint said Licht was prescribed 9,761 tablets of hydrocodone/acetaminophen between August 2010 and March 2012 from a physician who was … Continue reading →

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - People with expired or unneeded prescription drugs can get rid of them safely Saturday by participating in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's fourth National Prescription Take Back Day. Law enforcement agencies, military bases, hospitals, universities and businesses across the county will accept dropped-off medications between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., according to the DEA. The service is free and anonymous, with no questions asked. "Getting these potentially harmful drugs off the streets of our community is an important step in decreasing prescription-drug abuse among our youth," said William Sherman, acting special agent in charge of the DEA's San Diego office. During the most recent Prescription Take Back Day, in September, authorities collected 7,113 pounds of medications from San Diego and Imperial counties. Nationally, a total of over 188.5 tons of medications was turned in at 5,327 drop-off sites. Misuse of prescription drugs is a growing problem in the United States, according to medical and law enforcement officials. The substances often fall into the hands of recreational users -- many of them minors raiding their parents' medicine cabinets -- or are improperly discarded, posing public-health risks. A 2009 national survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health … Continue reading →

By Record Staff newsroom@troyrecord.com Twitter.com/troyrecord The Rensselaer County Sheriffs Office will take part in the Drug Enforcement Administrations National Take Back Day this Saturday, offering a safe and free way to dispose of expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs. Residents can bring all types of medications, including liquids in sealed containers, to the event. Labels may be removed from bottles, or pills may be dumped into a collection box. Needles will not be accepted. The program was designed in order to reduce the risk of prescription drug abuse and or accidental overdose by children or people who may confuse the drug for another medication. All medications will be turned over to the DEA for destruction. National Take Back Day will take place this Saturday at the West Sand Lake Fire House, located at 3697 Route 43, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, contact the Rensselaer County Sheriffs Office at 270-5448. The rest is here: Safely dispose of old prescriptions on National Take Back Day … Continue reading →

By Frank Abderholden fabderholden@stmedianetwork.com April 24, 2012 6:32PM A bag of approximately 20 pounds of prescription drugs brought to the Drug Take Back collected at the Zion Police Department. | Joe Shuman~Sun-Times Media storyidforme: 29416665 tmspicid: 10651377 fileheaderid: 4888622 Updated: April 25, 2012 2:49AM That unused medication in your medicine cabinet is just a problem waiting to happen. Flush it down the toilet and you harm the environment, same with throwing it into a landfill. Eventually, those unused drugs could be stolen and used illegally. Now you have another option: a prescription drug drop-off operated by the police and the United States Drug Enforcement Agency with a no-questions-asked policy. The Lake County Sheriffs Office and the DEA will hold two drop-off events Saturday, one in Deer Park, southern Lake County, and one in Beach Park, in northern Lake County. Sheriff Mark Curran said this is a great opportunity to prevent pill abuse or to rid your house of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs. I encourage citizens to use this opportunity to safely dispose of unused medications. I see it as yet another way of helping to protect the youth of our community, he said. Medications can be … Continue reading →

Higher-income people found their way into dollar stores as the recession came crashing down. Nowadays,it's the place to go for, well, dollar store things: party decorations, gift wrap, cheapo reading glasses, reasonably priced greeting cards. But prescription drugs? According to the Sun-Sentinelin Florida, a Deals store -- owned by Dollar Tree and described byacustomeras an "upper-class dollar store" -- openedwith a pharmacy earlier this year. "Deals partnered with PharmaGo, an independent pharmacy with corporate offices in Boca Raton, to run the prescription services inside the store," the newspaper says. While other dollar chains say they have no plans to follow suit, some retail experts speculate that pharmacies could become commonplace as dollar stores ramp up the competition withdrugstore chains like CVS and Walgreens. That got us thinking: Will people be as enthusiastic about buying prescription drugs in dollar stores? (Post continues below.) DailyFinanceraised the same question: Originally posted here: Prescriptions at dollar store? … Continue reading →

The U.S. Forest Service is offering its 193 million acres of forests and grasslands as a prescription for healthier kids through an initiative of the National Environmental Education Foundation that connects children to nature. Washington, DC (PRWEB) March 28, 2012 The U.S. Forest Service is offering its 193 million acres of forests and grasslands as a prescription for healthier kids through an initiative of the National Environmental Education Foundation that connects children to nature. The foundations Children & Nature Initiative trains health care providers to take a childs environmental history and give patients and their guardians a written prescription for outdoor activity, connecting them with a particular forest, park, wildlife refuge, nature center or other public land near their neighborhood. Outdoor activity can help prevent serious health conditions like obesity and diabetes but also can reduce stress and serve as a support mechanism for attention disorders. Our nation's forests and grasslands offer tremendous physical, psychological and spiritual benefits to an increasingly urbanized populace, said U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell. We hope kids and parents alike will follow the doctor's orders when given a prescription for fun. The initiative gives health care providers the technical support, tools and resources they … Continue reading →