The mismanagement of pain medicine is worldwide

Dear Editor:

May I first say that my prayers are with the family of Jeffery Harvey at this time. What a great loss to us all. Jeffrey would have accomplished great things had he survived this horrid fate of addiction.

It would seem as if there is a widespread dilemma with the drugs Oxycontin and morphine, not just in your beautiful city of Safford, but everywhere. . .even worldwide.

Intended to relieve moderate to severe pain, these drugs also work on the mind to create a vacation of sorts from the stresses of life. With great potential for overdose, these medications are killing right and left and have been for years. How does this happen? Are there no cross-checking computers in the pharmacies and ERs from state to state or town to town? Where is the weak link?

My 58-year-old sister, afflicted with rheumatoid arthritis, recently passed away in Safford. Bless her heart. She had two doctors — MDs, mind you — in Safford and one MD in Tucson, a PA and a nurse practitoner in Safford, all of whom were giving her multiple prescriptions for her different pain meds: Ultram, Vicodin, Oxycontin, Neurontin plus her Methotrexate.

Besides the licensed caregivers carelessly dishing out the drugs, in my sister's case there were predatory neighbors and employees at her senior apartment complex taking advantage of the elderly there by supplying the stronger morphine tablets to support the habit, trading food stamps, aquired food and lesser-milligram pain pills in the trade. We all knew of the addiction and made attempts to help, but to what end? We put our trust in the professionals to do this and support us as her concerned family.

The mismanagement of these meds is huge, and although the health caregivers do not want the patient to be in pain, the chronic patients need extra attention from some entity to ensure the best quality of life for our loved ones. It is too late for my dear, sweet sister and for Jeffery, but maybe not for the rest of those addicted to these medications.

Something has to be done. The weak link has to be found. God bless the infirm, and God bless their caretakers,

Suzan Chilcoat

Socorro, NM