POSITION STATEMENT
Garrett Harding
Prescription Drugs in LDS Society
According to the most recent statistics from the Utah County Division of Substance Abuse Prevention, Utah leads the nation in prescription drug abuse. Deaths caused by prescription drug abuse exceeded vehicle fatalities in 2007 for the first time in Utah’s history. On a statewide level, unintentional overdoses resulting in death occurred in 24 of the 29 counties in Utah, which suggests that Utah has higher rates per capita for prescription drug abuse than any other state in the nation, both in rural and urban living environments.
Utah County, one of the most conservative counties in the nation, leads the state with a record number of problems. In a recent survey, almost half of the residents admitted they knew someone personally who was abusing prescription pain medications. These individuals range in age from teenagers to the elderly, and the majority seem to have one things in common: their religion. According to the Deseret News, 88% of Utah county residents are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For these residents, religion is not just a part of life, but a way of life. A lifestyle that promotes abstinence, healthy eating, and avoidance of harmful substances, specifically tobacco, alcohol, drugs, tea and illicit drugs. For practicing members, it may be surprising to find that Utah county is ranked the highest in prescription drug abuse despite its conservative reputation. The current social norms with regards to prescription drugs within the LDS community are distorted and must be re-evaluated to ensure that appropriate changes take place.
As a society, Latter-day Saints are taught principles of obedience. This leads individuals to adhere to directions given by qualified physicians. Generally members hold themselves to high standards, striving often for perfection. This quest can lead to unintentional abuse in the beginning stages of addiction. Consequently, there is greater tolerance within the community because patients are not necessarily ill-intentioned.
As a result of the pressures to succeed in every endeavor, and to do so effortlessly, members may at times succumb to depression, feeling that they are not as competent as others within their social circle or congregation. This feeling of inadequacy translates into frequent medical visits and unnecessary prescriptions. A dependence on medication is the eventual outcome for many adults. This unintentional dependency accounts for a large percentage of non-illicit drug users, who strive to keep a particular image and status. Currently, that mean age is 41.9 years.
However, all fault cannot be put on the residents. Some responsibility lies in the hands of those who prescribe. Community leaders have issued reports stating that if prescription medications are not available, abuse rates will decrease. Though most doctors prescribe pills for the betterment of the individuals’ health, there remains a problem of overprescribing. Physicians and dentists are prescribing well above the necessary amount to patients. When a patient visits a doctor for a certain problem, they expect to leave knowing exactly what is wrong and how the condition should be treated. The effortless indicator of healing is an orange bottle full of pills. It is convenient for the physician and patient alike; however, this remedy upon treating the patient’s problem, will also start a process of refilling and addiction.
This refilling and addiction is considered normal in today’s society. It is not uncommon to see individuals of all ages possessing prescription drugs. On any given day, schools, nursing homes, hospitals and workplaces across Utah County are full of thousands of pills that can easily be consumed, sold or stored for later purposes. If consumed, the side effects are generally mild, when compared to illicit drugs. This appeals to teenagers, soccer moms and struggling workaholics who believe there is no visible harm from abusing.
Many residents in the community oppose the argument that religious social norms play a part in the increasing problem of prescription drug abuse in Utah. They believe that the LDS teachings and lifestyle do not add or contribute to the predicament, but rather prevent new addictions by teaching commandments that will ensure healthy lifestyles and happiness. Practicing Latter-day Saints proclaim these teachings to be true; even those struggling with drug addiction.
To improve the current circumstances, action must be taken. The means by which intervention must be initiated are three-fold. First, action must be taken within the LDS community. Members have the opportunity to write general authorities of the church, expressing concern in regards to the issue. Changes can be made within the curriculum of seminary, church meetings, and missionary discussions to more accurately define drug abuse within the teachings of the Word of Wisdom. These changes would call attention to the issue, better educate both youth and adults alike, and bring the community together to fight the societal apathy in regards to prescription drug abuse.
The second part of the solution to this problem is better education. Classes and workshops should be offered within the schools and community to inform the public of this problem. Stress management should be addressed to better aid individuals in working through problems. Individuals will learn coping skills, as well as the importance of exercise and good communication, to avoid the unnecessary masking of emotions with prescriptions.
Finally, physicians and pharmacies must be more aware of the implications of overprescribing and doctor shopping. More articles should be published on this topic to bring the current statistics to the attention of medical professionals. In their continuing education courses, physicians should be informed of the growth of prescription drug abuse and reminded of their accountability.
Prescription drug abuse is spreading across the county, state, and nation. As the highest ranking state in the matter, Utah has a responsibility to take action. The LDS community has been greatly affected and their views have been distorted as to what is considered medically and morally acceptable in terms of the consumption of prescription drugs. This pervading issue will continue to spread if social norms within the LDS community are not changed. Through the efforts of the LDS community, better education for the public, and with the help of medical professionals, attitudes of apathy will be transformed into those of action, putting an end to the spread of this social disease.
POSITION STATEMENT
Alicia Welker
More Prescription Drug Drop-Off Boxes Needed in Utah County
Prescription drug abuse has become a problem in the State of Utah. In past years, Utah has had the highest rates of prescription drug abuse in the nation. One factor that leads to this type of abuse in Utah County is the result of many residents holding onto their leftover prescription drugs. Residents of Utah County hold onto their leftover drugs for many reasons but one of the largest factors that lead them to keep their prescription drugs is they don’t know where to dispose of these leftover drugs. In Utah County alone, 36% of residents did not know how to properly dispose of their leftover prescription drugs. Utah County residents can take their drugs to prescription drug drop off boxes located at local police departments, but local police departments aren’t always the most convenient locations for residents.
Right now in Utah County there are only prescription drug drop off boxes located at law enforcement agencies. The Utah County Health Department stated that there is “no uniform take-back system for clinics, hospitals, care centers or even doctor’s offices.” For many residents this comes at an inconvenience. Local enforcement agencies are not always near the resident’s homes or located in areas that are convenient for residents to stop and drop off their drugs. I know for me personally I would not feel overly motivated to go all the way across town to drop off my leftover prescription drugs, and this could probably persuade me to hang on to my leftover prescription drugs until it became convenient enough to drop them off.
I recommend that Utah County make drop off boxes more accessible by putting more drop off boxes in clinics, pharmacies, and doctors’ offices. There is a federal law that indicates that narcotic pain killers need to be dropped off at law enforcement agencies or at drug drop off events in which law enforcement must be present. My recommendation then is to have the drop off boxes located in clinics, pharmacies, and doctors’ offices accept all non-narcotic leftover prescription drugs. These entities are those who are responsible in the first place for prescribing residents their drugs, so it makes sense to let them be in charge of accepting the extra prescription drugs that their patients did not use. If these entities were able to accept leftover prescription drugs, this would make it much more convenient for residents to drop off their medication. Residents would know where these entities are and will mostly likely be closer to their homes compared to law enforcement agencies. I believe also that these drugs would be in good hands, because doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals know how to properly handle prescription drugs.
Many might believe it would cost too much to have prescription drug drop off boxes throughout the county in places other than law enforcement agencies. When I say cost I mean the effort and time it would take to distribute and set up the extra drug drop off boxes throughout the county, and the increased effort it would be to collect all the leftover drugs, when they are spread out throughout the county. However, I think those who believe that these two things come at a high cost fail to realize that there is a bigger cost that is being put on the residents of Utah County. One in ten adults in Utah County is dying due to prescription drug abuse each year. Included in this statistic are teenagers who are abusing prescription drugs that are left in their homes. Loss of life greatly outweighs the cost of setting up drop off boxes and pickup services. These deaths could be greatly decreased if residents had more availability to prescription drug drop off boxes. It is important that we be willing to put a little “cost” into making prescription drug drop-off boxes more available in Utah County so we can reduce the cost of not having them more available.
All residents in Utah county who have leftover prescriptions should get involved by joining together and petitioning for drop boxes to become more available at pharmacies, clinics, and doctors offices. It is important that we get everyone involved so we can get these entities to have drop off boxes that would receive leftover non-narcotic prescription drugs. The addition of drug drop off boxes for non-narcotic prescriptions is just one step than can be taken to address prescription drug abuse in Utah County.
I also urge every reader to educate their friends and families on this issue. Prescription drug abuse is a problem in Utah County. Drop off boxes can be an important part of the solution.
POSITION STATEMENT
Scott Daly
Over Prescribing: The Root of the Issue
When a person turns on the television to watch a ball game, that person can be assured they will be bombarded by advertisements for this drug or that drug. Prescription drugs are a huge industry in the United States. It is no question that prescription drug abuse is on the rise. It is no question that this is a major problem with all age groups. It is no question that a concerted effort is necessary to reduce the abuse. It is however a question as to what is the best way to accomplish that feat. Do we have prescription drug abuse awareness assemblies in the school? Or perhaps we should have greater access to dispose of drugs. Maybe a solution would be to have people go door to door encouraging people to dispose of their excess drugs.
Prescription drug abuse has been treated like cancer, searching for effective treatments; what we need is a cure to the problem. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reported in 2004 that 14 million patients misuse their medications. More than 20,000 cases a year result in an unintentional death. The problem is that people are being over prescribed for drugs. Physicians and doctors are prescribing well above the necessary amount to patients. We need to have regulation that prohibits doctors from over prescribing.
Many in this nation are free market and capitalist champions, who want zero government restriction on anything. The drug corporations are a very lucrative business and obviously oppose the government sticking its nose in health care. Some feel that too much regulation on doctors is bad and does not promote competition and thus innovation and better practices. Also regulating doctors’ prescription writing may have a steep economic cost. Also it is widely felt that doctors are very intelligent and know the proper amount of drugs to prescribe. Whether people use the drugs as prescribed or abuse them themselves, or give them away is simply a personal choice of responsibility.
There are many opponents to government regulation on anything. However for the greater good and safety of this nation’s people, it becomes necessary when such problems arise. The argument that preventing doctors through legislation that regulates their prescription drugs is too expensive is a double edged sword. It is true that the process of having follow and actually regulating the prescriptions written by doctors would be costly. However the costs of prescription drug abuse is a large number itself. Wouldn’t we rather spend a chunk of money preventing drug abuse than treating those who are addicted to it? As for doctors knowing best and being trained well in how much to prescribe, it is widely felt that there is not enough training in medical school concerning drug prescriptions. Many people
Thinking about this issue logically we can assume that stopping prescription drug abuse at the choke point would be best. The choke point is in the physician’s pen as he writes that prescription. If a prescription does not last long enough, then the patient can call the doctor and see if receiving more prescription drugs is an option. By under prescribing a drug to a patient, a doctor is merely inconvenienced and may have to examine the situation and give more drugs as needed. By over prescribing a drug, a doctor may have effectively created a junky, someone who will need years of recovery from drug addiction. Doctors aren’t completely at fault; people have a personal responsibility to use drugs as prescribed. Ultimately it is in the hands of patients and citizens to be responsible. However, with tighter regulated drug prescriptions people don’t even have to make the choice whether or not they will abuse the drug or not. While this obviously wouldn’t end prescription drug abuse it would dramatically reduce it like no other intervention.
The idea is a novel one. So what can be done to put this intervention in motion? First we need to mobilize as a community and writer our representatives and tell them what we want. It would be wise to form coalitions in our community with physicians, teachers, law enforcement, and health officials. This issue is one that requires the government to take action. We must come together as communities and speak up at our town hall meetings. We don’t want our kids being exposed to excess prescription drugs; we need to remove this temptation from society. With communities working in unison to voice their opinions in emails to government officials, we can get the ball moving on legislation that will stop prescription drug abuse at its very root.
POSITION STATEMENT
Kimberly Jensen
Prevention Works: Rid Your Home of Excess Prescription Drugs
Prescription drug abuse is a huge problem among residents of Utah County. In fact, in a survey of Utah County residents, 47% admitted that they knew someone personally who was abusing prescription pain medication in Utah County. Most of the problems of abuse of prescription pain medication are stemmed by the fact that prescription pain relievers are too available in Utah County. Among Utah County residents, 34% admitted to having leftover prescription medication in their home. Community leaders have said that research supports the fact that if the availability of prescription pain medication is reduced, that the rate of abuse will also decrease. More needs to be done in Utah County to reduce the availability of prescription pain medication.
Surveys that have been done throughout the county point out that people who have leftover prescription pain medication are linked with an increased likelihood of the following: “using it for purposes not originally intended by your doctor, sharing the prescription, less concern about getting in trouble with the law for illegally using prescription pain medication, and less concern about the health risks associated with pain medication abuse and misuse.” It is clear to see that families and individuals are at a greater risk of abusing prescription drugs if they simply have leftover pain relievers in the home.
Currently in Utah County, there is not enough knowledge or resources dealing with the proper way to dispose of excess prescriptions. Residents need to learn about the problems of excess prescription drugs and find ways to get rid of them. In order to prevent more prescription drug abuse, more drug drop-off locations need to be built.
In Utah County, there are only 4 drop-off boxes for leftover prescriptions. Research suggests that this is not enough. More boxes need to be built in order to make a change on availability. Of the current drop-off boxes, most of them are located in the southern part of the county, making it less convenient for all residents. The current drop-off boxes are not available for use 24 hours a day. Out of the four drop-off boxes in the county, only one of them records the amounts of drugs that are left. However, the tracking methods of this are not even clear.
A major problem with the drug drop-off boxes is the fact that people are not educated about them. During a study, a receptionist at a local police department was unable to give information about the drop-off box because she did not know it even existed. People need to be educated so the knowledge can be shared with others.
Another problem that Utah County drop-off boxes deals with is the fact that publicity of the drop-off boxes is pretty much non-existent; residents of Utah County do not even realize that drop-off boxes are available for their use.
Many people in Utah County feel that they do not need to worry about storing excess prescription pain medication in their homes, so they feel like drug drop-off locations are not a necessity. Some residents feel like their family will not be threatened by the problem because they believe their children would never abuse prescription drugs. Residents of Utah County also may not feel like they have enough time or the means of disposing their excess drugs. However, residents need to realize that simply having excess prescription drugs in their home automatically puts them at an increased risk. Prevention is primary and residents need to dispose of their excess drugs to stop the problem of prescription drug abuse in Utah County.
In order to make a change in this community, a lot needs to be done. First, more drop-boxes should be set up in the county, particularly in the northern part of the county to meet the needs of all residents. Second, people need to be aware of the fact that drop-off boxes are available in Utah County. Publicity will be vital in making sure people are made known of the drop-boxes. And finally, residents of Utah County need to be educated and informed of the possible impacts of having excess drugs stored in their home. When all of this is done and the availability of prescription drugs is reduced, the abuse of prescription drugs in Utah County will also decrease.
Documentation:
Lindsay, G., Merrill, R., & Lindsay, R. (2009). Smart Utah County [Pamphlet]. Retrieved from http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=123e36fb00fd64b8&mt=application%2Fpdf&url=http%3A%2F%2Fmail.google.com%2Fmail%2F%3Fui%3D2%26ik%3D9b22f1f786%26view%3Datt%26th%3D123e36fb00fd64b8%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dattd%26zw&sig=AHBy-hZ0yTVuMIRu5PbtEr7kVNXBsruY-A
