Substance Abuse and Addiction – Five Different CEU Classes
In many regions in the United States, it is not only opioids that are killing tens of thousands of people per year, but the mixing other dangerous prescription and non-prescription drugs with opioids and alcohol. These deadly mixtures are known as “Goofballs” and “Speedballs” and are destroying many urban and rural American communities.
A Goofball or Speedball is a deadly combination of potent cocaine or methamphetamine and fentanyl. This poison can be taken orally, intravenously, snorted or smoked. Whatever the method, Goofballs and Speedballs can quickly kill.
Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medications available without a prescription to the general public and have been recognized by the US Food and Drug Administration as safe if used at recommended doses.
OTC medicines treat various illnesses and their symptoms, including pain, coughs and colds, diarrhea, constipation, acne, allergies, nasal congestion, and others. Unfortunately, as is the case with illegal and prescription drugs, OTC medications can also be abused. Some OTC medicines have active ingredients with the potential for addiction and misuse at higher-than-recommended dosages.
Medical professionals can play a central role in the early detection and intervention of polysubstance abuse in their patients. Physicians often overlook indications of polysubstance use and miss the correlation between opioids and multi-substance abuse. In today’s world, with multi-substance addiction coinciding with the opioid crisis in America, there is a necessity for extended training in substance use and abuse recognition for dental professionals.
The majority of chronic pain patients are in or beyond the fifth decade of life. Chronic pain patients will generally have co-morbidity and poly-pharmacy issues that accompany their chronic pain. Health care providers must correctly evaluate a patient’s need for opioid analgesic medications against the co-morbidity and poly-pharmacy risks.