The Painful Truth

Author of The Painful Truth

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on Google+Follow Us on TwitterFollow Us on LinkedInFollow Us on PinterestFollow Us on YouTube
  • Home
  • About
  • Book
  • News
  • Documentary
  • Blog
  • Podcasts
  • Media Room
  • Contact
 RSS

Subscribe to the blog

Poll

What is the greatest priority for changing the way we treat addiction?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Recent Posts

  • Treating Babies with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
  • Rare Diseases and Orphan Drugs
  • Marijuana and Pain
  • Virtual Reality Therapy for People in Chronic Pain
  • Breaking Bad 2018
  • Response to People in Pain
  • Everything Isn’t as Perfect as It Seems in Ireland
  • Yes, Restrictions on Opioids Are a Threat to Human Rights
  • David C. Holzman Shatters Addiction Myths
  • Opioid Lawsuits Threaten Lives of Pain Sufferers
  • Utah Opioid Crisis Summit
  • Repeating the Mistakes of the Past
  • Prescription Drug Advertisements
  • Family of Pain
  • The ACPA Presents Programs for Migraine Sufferers

Recent Comments

  • Kenneth R. McClelland on Why Keep a Pain Journal
  • Jim Gibson on Marijuana and Pain
  • John D. Waldron on Breaking Bad 2018
  • Deborah Scheers on Suicide and Chronic Pain
  • Shonya on Response to People in Pain

Archives

  • June 2018 (5)
  • May 2018 (4)
  • April 2018 (4)
  • March 2018 (5)
  • February 2018 (4)
  • January 2018 (4)
  • December 2017 (5)
  • November 2017 (4)
  • October 2017 (4)
  • September 2017 (5)
  • August 2017 (4)
  • July 2017 (5)
  • June 2017 (4)
  • May 2017 (4)
  • April 2017 (5)
  • March 2017 (4)
  • February 2017 (4)
  • January 2017 (4)
  • December 2016 (5)
  • November 2016 (4)
  • October 2016 (6)
  • September 2016 (6)
  • August 2016 (7)
  • July 2016 (9)
  • June 2016 (8)
  • May 2016 (8)
  • April 2016 (7)
  • March 2016 (10)
  • February 2016 (12)
  • January 2016 (9)
  • December 2015 (6)
  • November 2015 (3)
  • October 2015 (3)
  • September 2015 (2)
  • August 2015 (4)
  • July 2015 (5)
  • June 2015 (5)
  • May 2015 (2)

Shades of Grey: a Pro-Patient Approach to Chronic Pain

June 30, 2015 by Lynn Webster, M.D. Leave a Comment

Opioids have garnered a great deal of media attention lately – much of it I’ve written about and been deeply interested in. As a doctor who has worked with people who suffer from the most severe forms of chronic pain throughout my medical career, I have witnessed both sides of the opioid issue. Many of my patients have benefited from their prescriptions. Many have benefited more from alternative therapies.

Life does not always have clearly defined sides, and sometimes the best answer lies between the black and white. My mission is to help people with chronic pain find some relief, something that cannot be solved solely with opioids or settled by abandoning them. As a physician, my job is to ensure the health and safety of my patients.

I believe that some people with severe chronic pain need opioid prescriptions, perhaps even high doses of opioids. In turn, some might label me as being “pro-opioid.” But how can anyone be truly pro-opioid when these drugs are associated with so much harm? I despise that we don’t have safer alternatives that help more people in pain find relief.

I am pro-patient.

Assessing a solution for a patient is a highly individualized process, in which a physician must weigh all aspects of the patient’s health to provide a recommendation. When physicians look into the eyes of someone in terrible pain and who has nowhere else to turn, we have to make a decision.

I will be the first to tell you that we need safer alternative and holistic approaches to combat pain in a variety of ways. We need payers to cover these approaches so that all patients have access to them. And we certainly need policy and money to catch up to patient needs. Sadly, we are at a time in chronic pain’s history when patient needs and existing treatment approaches simply do not match up.

Until better, safer treatment is readily available to patients, opioids remain one solution for some chronic pain patients to find a bit of relief. The probable beneficence of the treatment outweighs its possible maleficence in their case.

When faced with pain, we do the best we can. In the debate over appropriate treatments for chronic pain, I say, let compassion lead us forward, and let science light the way.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: chronic pain, Dr. Lynn R. Webster, opioids, the painful truth

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Copyright © 2021 Lynn R. Webster, M.D. | [email protected]