Not sure if this is in the right place. Dr. refusing to help.

[SeraTuki]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? I am posting this for a friend. so please bear with me. He is in Alabama.
Back in Feb. he tried to commit sucide by overdosing on his anti-depressant meds. This resulted in a coma that lasted 10 days. kidney failure. Liver damage. He now suffers with peripheral Neuropathy (sp?) in his legs and feet.
He's been told it is not something that they can cure..and is a chronic pain condition. He's accepted this. But since has suffered needlessly with the pain because his doctors refuse to give him pain medication. From what he said...they are afraid he will overdose again, and so they don't want to be resposible for giving him the meds he could do that with.
Aren't they required to do SOMETHING? they told him it's not curable...but that surely doesn't mean he has to suffer like this..does it?

I really appriciate any help I can get...thanks.


Sara

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? I am posting this for a friend. so please bear with me. He is in Alabama.
Back in Feb. he tried to commit sucide by overdosing on his anti-depressant meds. This resulted in a coma that lasted 10 days. kidney failure. Liver damage. He now suffers with peripheral Neuropathy (sp?) in his legs and feet.
He's been told it is not something that they can cure..and is a chronic pain condition. He's accepted this. But since has suffered needlessly with the pain because his doctors refuse to give him pain medication. From what he said...they are afraid he will overdose again, and so they don't want to be resposible for giving him the meds he could do that with.
Aren't they required to do SOMETHING? they told him it's not curable...but that surely doesn't mean he has to suffer like this..does it?

I really appriciate any help I can get...thanks.


Sara

I'm sorry your friend is suffering "needlessly", but are you forgetting that he did it to himself?

I certainly wouldn't want to be the doctor giving this guy pain medication.

Your next post will be "How can I sue the doctor who gave my suicidal buddy the medications he used to kill himself?"

 

[Gail in Georgia]

Your friend has a history of attempting suicide with medication.

His physicians have every right to be highly concerned if he is provided with prescription pain medications he may try this again, especially if dealing with chronic pain.

There is also the concern that these medications may do further damage to his liver.

He might request a referral to a pain clinic/specialist to discuss non-medication methods of treating this pain.

Gail

 

[SeraTuki]

Okay well thats the hard spot. He's already been given the medication he overdosed on. it wasn't pain meds...but I do see the thinking behind it.

He was put back on the med he overdosed on as soon as he came out of the coma.

I also understand the thinking that "he did this to himself" in some sense you're right, however....with the doctors making him suffer with the pain of it..they're simply making him want to repeat the sucide attempts to escape the pain...
Also, he has been seeing a therapist since the coma, and honestly has no desire to die at this point. But with nothing but a future of mind numbing pain...there has to be a law against letting people suffer like this.

 

[ecmst12]

Has he been to a pain management specialist? There may be other treatments available. Doctors are always going to be wary of giving narcotics to someone with a history like that, and more importantly it may be medically contraindicated, especially with his liver condition. Has he discussed the situation with his psychiatrist?

 

[lealea1005]

Okay well thats the hard spot. He's already been given the medication he overdosed on. it wasn't pain meds...but I do see the thinking behind it.

He was put back on the med he overdosed on as soon as he came out of the coma.

I also understand the thinking that "he did this to himself" in some sense you're right, however....with the doctors making him suffer with the pain of it..they're simply making him want to repeat the sucide attempts to escape the pain...Also, he has been seeing a therapist since the coma, and honestly has no desire to die at this point. But with nothing but a future of mind numbing pain...there has to be a law against letting people suffer like this.

He was put back on an antidepressant, because it was the appropriate medication for him. Most Physicians will shy away from prescribing any narcotic pain relievers. The two bolded, contradictory statements above would make it a huge liability. Frankly, knowing this patient's history, it may be considered negligent to prescribe narcotic pain relievers on a continuing basis without it being in a very controlled situation (like inpatient).

I hope your friend continues with his therapy and current medication and, as advised by other posters, seeks the help of a Physician board certified in pain management.

 

[CraigFL]

I thought that some pain management doctors use implanted, controlled release pain medication that would prevent overdoses...

 

[lealea1005]

I thought that some pain management doctors use implanted, controlled release pain medication that would prevent overdoses...

They can implant a neurostimulator that delivers a controlled electrical stimulation to the spinal cord. It will blocks the pain "message" to the brain. It does help a lot of people with chronic extremeity pain.

There are also some medications that can be delivered that way.

 

[rebeccarollers]

I'm not a lawyer but I do live with Major Depression, Anxiety, and BPD and talk with a lot people who have mental illnesses, and I survived a suicide attempt and may have some liver damage as a result. I haven't had my enzymes tested recently so I don't know the extent of the damage, if any. I just don't have the money. I wanted to respond and add a different viewpoint to the conversation.

Okay well thats the hard spot. He's already been given the medication he overdosed on. it wasn't pain meds...but I do see the thinking behind it.

He was put back on the med he overdosed on as soon as he came out of the coma.

Anti depressants are a lot different than being prescribed a medication for pain. Depending on what medication given Prozac, Cymbalta, ect those class of drugs are nowhere near as addictive as a pain med. The benefits of the anti depressant probably outweigh the risks would be my guess. My understanding with pain meds, other than being addictive, is the longer you take them the more you will need to combat the pain.

I also understand the thinking that "he did this to himself" in some sense you're right, however....with the doctors making him suffer with the pain of it..they're simply making him want to repeat the sucide attempts to escape the pain...

not in "some" sense, in every sense.

Any Psychiatrist is going to be hesitant now in prescribing any medication that may be addictive or pose a risk for a successful suicide. Imagine the questions the Dr. would get if he prescribed a pain med, and there was another suicide attempt and it was successful. My guess is it would be something like, "Why would you prescribe a medication like that when you knew it was addictive and he's attempted suicide recently?" Those questions would probably come from family members, as well as, authorities. Family members would then inquire if they should sue the Dr. for prescribing the medication.

To much risk on the part of the Dr. and who would want to live with the thought that they were the one who prescribed medication which caused a suicide.

Also, he has been seeing a therapist since the coma, and honestly has no desire to die at this point. But with nothing but a future of mind numbing pain...there has to be a law against letting people suffer like this.

"At this point" is the key phrase. It's not uncommon for someone who is being treated for mental illness to stop taking the medication once they begin to feel better, and then something happens and they relapse into a deeper, darker depression. In fact that is fairly common.

A lot of suicides are successful, and A LOT aren't. The people who attempt suicide rarely think about the consequences of their actions if their unsuccessful.

It's good that he's seeing a therapist, but look into other methods of pain management.