Okay, so for most swims it is obvious that technology- the ability to communicate like this over the internet, order substances for foreign pharmacies or research chemical traders, compare experiences- has greatly contributed to both the general knowledge available about drugs, and the ease of obtaining a wide variety of substances. In fact, she remembers reading or hearing from several sources, possibly mentioned somewhere in these forums, the theory that this almost instantaneous dissemination of new information will, in the end, be the ultimate downfall of the drug war- herbal highs, new research compounds, etc. will keep being created and shared with a fervor, as they have been thus far, and in theory the enforcement will always be falling farther behind, to the point where prohibition becomes pointless. On the other hand, there is always the analogue act, or even more sinister and prohibitive laws which could no doubt be enacted. And of course, the technology available to the drug community is also available to law enforcement, who usually have much more power and money invested in their operations. In many ways it gives law enforcement tools to more effectively prosecute non-violent drug "offenses" and keep tabs on individuals, reducing overall privacy and freedoms inside and out of the drug subculture. Of course everything has its pros and cons, and this is nothing new to most of us.
However, Swim has been thinking lately about the effects this is having on the medical fields, and in turn the prescription drugs so heavily relied upon (speaking for the laws and policies in swim's home country, the US) While most of us are fairly used to having access to cell phones and computers and the like, it seems that the medical profession has just recently undergone some of the bigger transitions in this regard, and one can observe that change finally sinking in. Swim remembers the days of hand-written medical records compiled in a big fat file folder, the neat little prescription tear-off pads and all- it feels like it was just yesterday, lol. Just recently, within the past three or four years, she has noticed that it has all become electronic in her area at least. Hospitals here double- or triple-verify the accuracy of the meds they give out, through a portable computer system which requires them to log every entry before removing the drug from the locked area, scan the drug label itself, and then the patients id bar code, and then re-enter the intended drug/dose before giving it to the patient. Not saying this is a bad thing- it's good to ensure caution and keep people accountable in this environment. But it seems like the transition from good ol' pen and paper to these high tech bar codes and computer chips happened in the blink of an eye- and I admit I am a young'en. Of course, other related fields have taken advantage of the technology too.. Pharmacies and liquor stores and even grocery stores have cameras all over, security coded doors and safes, panic/911 buttons, and detailed patient histories filed indefinitely in their computer system... Chemicals that are related to chemicals that are even remotely related to analogues of illegal chemicals are carefully scrutinized before sale, and even harmless chems in unusual quantities or by an unknown or unusual person can trigger alarms that are heard far and wide. From a recent thread, there is a fairly sophisticated chain of command and method of detection within that community-
http://www.drugs-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=28564 Even the penal system- being arrested once will get your photo, fingerprint, even your dna on file with the government for the rest of.. well however long they decide to hang onto it really. And of course new and often bizarre accounts of the novel happenings and "advances" of the human race are reported daily- with the "landscape" changing and growing, the hierarchies and individuals within it must adapt to the changes, without knowing for sure how they will play out in the overall scheme of things.
Come to think of it, of the past three or four different doctors/dentists swim has visited in the past year and received prescriptions from- anything from an antibiotic to a controlled substance- all are now using computer printed prescriptions. So while all this technology could likely trace a patient who was "doctor-shopping" or forging multiple scripts much more easily, these scripts seem to beg one to forge them. A standard white sheet of computer paper, with some standard font black typed words? The only things actually written is the half-inch scribble of a signature on the bottom line. Swim does not advocate this and has never tried it herself, but when she started receiving these new scripts, it got her thinking. Between scripts, swim switched from a big known monopoly of a pharmacy to a co-op alternative and locally based pharmacy, for reasons of both convenience of location and support for their small/local business and philosophy. She crossed of the old pharmacy name on the script, and wrote in the new one, and no one questioned a thing (the drug was an amphetamine).. so she started thinking, couldn't she just photocopy it, or even type it up herself, and take one copy to pharmacy A and one to B? It seems that with so much Rx fraud occurring, and the convoluted and tedious efforts to stop it- adding gel or fillers to pills to prevent injection, requiring detailed records and accountability, even moreso through the new electronic maintenance of medical records.. but why wouldn't they think of this? Of course, the people who forge scripts are going to do so no matter the physical dimensions or font of the actual prescription itself.. and to do so, even when it seems so simple, is not in swim's opinion a risk worth taking.. it would be so easy for a pharmacy to place that call to verify it, or check their computer records and find that something isn't quite right, and swi-me or you could be screwed. So don't do it.
But I am genuinely interested in hearing from anyone with knowledge of these things.. or using this thread as a place to post discussion of such information once swim or swiy manages to dig it up. Some questions I have are: how exactly are different prescription drugs treated, and is this based on general federal law, or laws specific to substances? For example, "It is a crime to transfer this drug to a person for whom it was not prescribed" is oft printed on bottles. Is this true for all Rx drugs, or does this have some basis in whether the drug is classified, by US gov't standards, as an abusable or potentially harmful substance? I mean, it is plausible that on the books, any transfer of a drug is a felony of equal measure, but in practice, they are not likely to prosecute the wife who shares her inhaler with her asthmatic husband, or the parent who uses left over antibiotics when her child is sick because she doesn't have health insurance.. don't get me, or swim, or anyone else started on that..
In the example given before, swim filed her legitimate prescription for an amphetamine without problems after altering the pharmacy name originally printed to due to her switching pharmacies.. she also noticed that there was the doc's signature, but the line for the DEA number was blank. Is this no longer required? Is use of this number treated as a way to legitimize a valid Rx, or seen as a potential way for the system to be misused? Is there a central database of these numbers that can be checked in real time, or is it simply a record keeping method?
Swim has also looked into some information on Xyrem, which is the legal/pharmaceutical GHB used to improve quality/restfulness of sleep, especially inducing the deeper, and more refreshing/beneficial stages, in addition to stabilizing ones sleep cycles.. she has found that it is treated with utmost caution- only produced and distributed by one central pharmacy, and has a very specific plan for when and how it can be prescribed, and a training and contract/waiver signed before they can proceed (described on their site
www.xyrem.com). She also knows about triplicates and such.. But she especially wonders about things like Desoxyn (methamphetamine) or pharmaceutical-grade cocaine- would these be treated in a manner similar to Xyrem, or only produced on an as-needed basis (I assume such medical uses are rare?).. or could these technically be prescribed in the same DEA authorized prescriber/triplicate form that is generally the requirement for something like an opioid painkiller..? Hmm, if an exclusive contract is required- which it is for Xyrem/GHB, again, only speculating about the other substances- this could be an easy way for the big Man to play the political game and throw money/trade favors with their allies or potential allies, and both wind up profiting off of drugs (which, as we all know, is morally evil, probably even moreso than the raping of children or the stabbing spouses, given the sentencing requirements- mandatory minimums and all *sarcasm*) In fact, if one individual gives a drug freely to another, without any profit at all, out of a purely selfless motive, that too is treated as equivalent to dealing- profiting off of drugs. But just imagine how much money is coming in from the sale of this legal product- which is no different chemically from the "illegal" one. And the amount of money big pharma is making from the sale of all sorts of other drugs. Ahh prescription drugs and politics- we'll have to save that for another thread..
Back on topic, as far as methadone- swim believes in her area doctors can prescribe it for pain in pill form, just as they can any other opioid drug- Oxycontin (oxycodone), MSContin (morphine), Dilaudid (hydromorphone) etc. but when it is specifically used for maintenance ie. one is stabilized at an appropriate dose and takes once every 24 hours, feeling none of the euphoric or sedating effects, versus pain management- ie. taken as needed/prn, in varying doses or at varying times, and generally more frequently administered- it is subject to a barrage of rules and regulations governed by a body called the "State Methadone Authority" (lol, it sounds so pompous) Is this consistent with others' experiences? What are toher countries' policies on this? I'd be especially interested to hear how pharmaceutical heroin legalization as a maintenance strategy has worked out in the few instances they've been tried- or what the common public perception is of these types of programs once legalized. Does "heroin" lose the stigma once legalized? Swim doubts it, although the factors causing the stigma- stereotypes resulting not from use of the drug, but from the conditions of the war on drugs- are generally lowered or removed entirely when stabilized at a therapeutic opioid maintenance dose.. SOURCE: As presented at the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse Conference in 2005- a study of stable MMT patients, while a small sample size of 45 individuals (58% participation)- set out to study measures of health/wellness and compare heroin-use period with methadone stabilized period- found significant decrease in illegal activity, specifically illegal activity to produce income and illegal drug use; significant increase in healthy social support structures and time spent doing productive/enjoyable activities or being around family/friends, lower rates of homelessness or instability of physical dwelling, and overwhelming majority have improved self-esteem and stress-management techniques. Job placement and employment increased, but not enough to be considered statistically significant. (
http://www.issuesofsubstance.ca/NR/r...KarmaKlien.pdf)
Overall, would be interested in more research on the subject, but swim can also say from personal experience with mmt and seeing acquaintances and strangers alike recover from their addictive destruction and make complete turnabouts in their life direction, that she thinks a majority of related research will back this up. She would also be interested to learn more about factors influencing perceptions of opiate maintenance treatments, no matter the opiod, differing rates of utilization and differing success rates if applicable and why (ie. is buprenorphine used more frequently because it is available as an Rx and doesn't require such a rigorous dosing schedule at the start? Is one substance chemically more effective for opiate addiction than others, or do they each suit different types of individuals? Is something like "prescription heroin" perceived differently (by the public and by addicts/those seeking treatment) than semi-synth or man-made opioids?)
Anyways, basically Swim wonders if there is any consistent standard for drugs which fall somewhere in the gray area between legality and criminality, specifically because of their dual classification, or classification as both medically useful and abusable- in terms, specifically, of US legal precedents and enforcement, but also in terms of social perceptions of chemicals due to such classification, or the input of those from other countries with differing experiences. Has the growing dependence on technology, and the increasing communicative and data-linking abilities, changed the way these things are approached on either end? Do you see technological advances as the end of the drug war, or the end of the drug culture, or something in between the two extremes? As something that has added more consistency to the complexities of drug policy and enforcement, or just muddled it further? How have these changes affected you personally in your lifetime?
And of course, I don't mean to throw all these questions out there and make you all my google-searching minions in order to answer them, lol. Just thought it would be a good topic to provoke some further thought, discussion, and/or research. I will certainly be on the lookout for relevant info and post it to this thread as I find it- as will swim and her five orange tomcats, who have been awake for too long off 400mg modafinil and 5mg methylphenidate- as prescribed and not in any way intended to be recreational- in fact, this is the longest she's stayed awake at a time since she quit cocaine a couple years back, so perhaps it is a good thing. But still, she thinks she best turn off the computer and go lie down before making a fool of her sleep deprived self and overwhelming the sane and sober (or slightly downed out, or nodding, or tripping, or too stoned to function) minds out there. End of really long post with probably too many questions to be answered, ever and especially not all in one thread that has nothing to do with itself. But feel free to try if one is speeding and anything written makes sense at the time.. lol. Swim had fun writing it anyways.. she needs to pass out and get some sleep and food and then maybe things will make more sense
09-01-2008, 20:13
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