Pharmaceutical Ethics

[Delilah]

I think there's lots of blame to go around. The drug companies, the doctors who'd accept bribes, or the pill pushers who just don't give a rats arse about patients.

I think doctors should know more about the drugs they'd be prescribing.

I was prescribed two drugs by my rheumatologist at one point, and within one day of taking them had had hallucinations. I thought maybe they'd go away with time, so kept taking the pills. The hallucinations got worse and worse. Called the pharmacy..they told me to stop taking them immediately. That those two pills when taken at the same time, cause hallucinations, than grand mal seizures, followed by a coma, and than death. Within 1-2 weeks of taking them. Good thing I stopped when I did, or it would have been lights out.

It's for these bad intereactions (and those that redglitter mentioned) that doctors should familiarize themselves with medications they prescribe. So that some deaths and diseases can be prevented. Yes there is patient responsibility, but most people would blindly trust what their doctors say or put them on, because of the mindset that they're doctors, so they're supposed to know what they're giving you won't cause you death or other disease complications.

When I called that doctor to tell her about the drug interaction, she says.."Oh okay, don't take it than.".. Well no, really? I thought I would. Y'know, just for the fun of tossing my shoe out of a car window.

[alobar51]

Originally Posted by koan

Do you believe that some pharmaceuticals are more dangerous than they acknowledge?

I believe that birth control pills, for example, completely mess up a woman's body. I *know* that Depo-Provera does horrendous things. How often do you think they conceal information to make money from the product?

There is a concept known as "Ducking the Doubleblind". Most clinical trials are six months. Many side effects don't show up for seven.

In an industry where Donald Rumsfeld was a CEO, how much honesty can you expect???

[rkdian]

My husband had a mild heart attack at 42 years old. This was followed by an angioplasty, which led to a stint and numerous drug prescriptions. After 4 years of taking off work for lab work, dr. appts., and general illnesses, his "numbers" were worse than the day of the heart attack. He took himself off all meds. Though we don't know where his #'s are at this point, his health seems to have improved 200%. This could be the result of state of mind, but I feel that a very large factor was the prescriptions he was taking. I have since found evidence that 3 out of 4 of the meds have very dangerous interactions. Now for the scary part, he drives a semi down the road with the school buses every day. Two of those drugs combined routinely cause loss of consciousness!! Would his employer, himself, his physician, the pharmacist, or the drug company be the ones named in the wrongful death suit in the case of a fatal accident??? I would bet my soul that it would not be the responsible parties, but the blind followers!

[gpthomlinson]

Hi All

With the number of times that doctors change their minds - try this, if that doesn't work, then try this - I sometimes thnk that the real drug trial only starts once the patients are actually using it.

Gail

[RedGlitter]

Originally Posted by gpthomlinson

Hi All

With the number of times that doctors change their minds - try this, if that doesn't work, then try this - I sometimes thnk that the real drug trial only starts once the patients are actually using it.

Gail

Good point and I tend to agree.