Youth prescription abuse
This blog entry is written by Sarah Johnson, project coordinator for Janesville Mobilizing 4 Change.
“Robber demands Oxycodone from pharmacist” – Janesville Gazette, December 14, 2012. During the last three weeks, three pharmacy narcotics robberies have taken place in the area. In addition to the incident in Janesville, Walgreens pharmacies in Madison were robbed of OxyContin indicating the area’s growing addiction to prescription drugs.
Medication abuse is not just an adult issue. The last Janesville Youth Risk and Behavior Survey showed that almost 30% of high school seniors abused prescription drugs. “Abuse” includes taking medications without a prescription, even if taken for medical reasons. It also means sharing prescription drugs with friends or taking them in a way not intended, including getting high.
Abuse of prescription drugs can produce serious, negative short- and long-term health effects, including addiction, overdose, and death. Sergeant Burdick with the Rock County Sherriff’s Office is quoted in an early November article in the Janesville Gazette, “As the addiction [to prescription pills] advances, they are likely to start taking more pills more often. When it becomes too difficult or expensive to take the pills, they might switch to heroin.” Heroin and opiates (such as Oxycodone and OxyContin) were behind more than half of the 2011 fatal overdoses in Rock County.
We have the ability and responsibility to create positive change for our youth and reduce their access to these drugs. How?
-Step one: Monitor the medications in your home. Would you know if pills were missing? Always be confident in answering yes.
-Step two: Secure medications – approach securing medications like you would any valuables in your home. Teens abuse prescription drugs because they are easily accessible. In fact, 70% of kids age 12 to 17 who have abused pain relievers say they got them from their friends or relatives, typically without their knowledge.
-Step three: Dispose of expired or unused medications. Simple and easy to use, Janesville’s three drop boxes are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week: Police Department, 100 N. Jackson; Mercy Health Mall, 1010 N. Washington St.; and Mercy Clinic East, 3525 E. Milwaukee St.
Want to do more? Consider getting involved with Janesville Mobilizing 4 Change (JM4C) – a collaboration of pro-active community members committed to preventing and reducing substance use among all youth through advocacy, awareness, and action. JM4C meets at noon on the third Thursday of every month in the public meeting room at Hedberg Library in Janesville. For more information email janesvillemobilizing4change@gmail.com or call 741-2105.
The authors of this blog are employed by local non-profit organizations and not the Janesville Gazette. Their views are not necessarily those of Gazette management.
Dec 18, 2012 at 9:32 a.m.
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Ok why don't these druggists have a bottle of placebos handy and give the thieves that instead of the real drugs ? There are many look alike drugs, it shouldn't be that difficult to make some phoney meds .
Dec 18, 2012 at 7 a.m.
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Great article Beth.
Dec 17, 2012 at 7:49 p.m.
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Respectfully, Sigma40, this blog entry is about prescription abuse, not side effects. I do agree that education about prescription abuse is important.
-Beth
Dec 17, 2012 at 3:18 p.m.
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you missed the point... the point was the side effects are different on everyone, so new medicine you are in uncharted territory... my antibiotics didnt make me high, no, more similar to tendonitis. Someone I know had other meds that made them go damn near crazy...
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You dont need to educate kids what every drug does... you need to educate them that they should find out themselves. If you get prescribed drug X, go look it up. dont just do it. If your friend has found drug Y, look it up. teach people how to educate themselves and the importance of it.
Dec 17, 2012 at 2:47 p.m.
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Antibiotics do not make you high. Good grief. There are thousands of prescription drug formulations, Sigma40, and there is simply no way that schools could educate you about all of them let alone the side effects that MAY occur. This is a discussion the patient needs to have with their doctor.
Dec 17, 2012 at 10:53 a.m.
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Maybe educate students more on prescription drugs? I had some antibiotics from the doc once and they dont really tell you anything about them, neither does the pharmasists. Apparently ciprofloxacin can cause your joints to hurt and kind of like tendonitis. I researched it and found it out. My point is, unless I did the research... no one told me anything. So how in the world would kids have any idea the side effects of any prescription drug??? No one tells them, they dont teach it.
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Classes they should make mandatory in schools.
1. Basic electrical (yes everything in society run on electricity, people should have a basic understanding of it.)
2. Basic home and vehicle maintenance (Everyone drives and everyone lives somewhere.)
3. Drug and Alcohol class. (illegal & prescription).
4. Handling your emotions class (stress, relationships, anger..etc).
5. Firearm handling & hunter safety.
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I know i deviated from your subject some, but they are basic things you can clearly see society should know and extremely lack. And lacking has lead to a lot of problems....ones that could have been avoided.
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