Transcript Rx for Prevention

Rx for
Prevention
Rx for Prevention
Prescription Drug Abuse in
Clark County
a presentation by:
What to Expect:
1
The Facts
2
Commonly Abused Rx Drugs
3
Impact of Rx Drugs and Why Teens Use
4
What you can do
Rx Abuse in Clark County:
Test your Rx IQ!
How much is a bottle of 30, 80 mg tablets of
Oxycontin worth on the street?
A.
B.
C.
D.
$50
$300
$1000
$2400
Test Your Rx IQ!
Answer:
• $2400! An 80 mg tablet of Oxy retails for
$6.00, but high demand on the street means
one tablet can sell for as much as $80.*
• Many crimes related to Rx abuse are on the
rise, including DUI, Pharmacy robberies and
assault.**
Test your Rx IQ!
Between 1997 and 2005, the number of
individual doses of Oxycodone sold in the
state of Washington increased by:
A.25%
B.100%
C.300%
D.500%
Test your Rx IQ!
Answer:
A 500% increase; from 1,941,270 individual
doses to 11,650,127 doses.
The number of methadone doses increased by
1,042%, from 918,004 to 10,481,780
Test your Rx IQ!
Scientists in the Pacific Northwest have found:
A.Hormones from medicines in lakes and
streams in King County
B.Medicines in the Columbia River
C.Medicines in the treated wastewater being
discharged to local waters of Olympia,
Lacey, Puyallup and Tacoma
D.All the above
Test your Rx IQ!
Answer:
All the above! As you’ve learned from our quiz,
Rx abuse affects things we all care about:
• Protecting our environment
• Safe community
• Healthy individuals and families
A Rising Concern
There are just as many new abusers of Rx drugs as
there are for marijuana.
Rx drugs are the most commonly abused drug among
12-13 year-olds
One in 10 high school seniors has mis-used
Vicodin in the the past year
OxyContin use by 8th graders doubled in last 4 years
Rx Data: True or False?
Every day 2500 kids in the
U.S. abuse prescription
drugs for the first time.
9 out of 10 people who
have drug/alcohol problems
started using as a teen
Washington State is ranked
#6 in the country for
prescription drug abuse
“Available Everywhere”
• Three in five teens say Rx pain
relievers are easy to get from parents’
medicine cabinets
• Half of teens say they’re easy to get
through someone’s prescriptions
• More than half say Rx pain relievers
are “available everywhere.”
Quiz:
Access
Rx Abuse Kills
Drug overdoses have surpassed car
accidents as the leading cause of
accidental deaths in Washington State
– The majority of these overdoses are
due to prescription drugs
Lifetime Use for Clark County Youth:
Alcohol
Marijuana
Rx drugs
73%
55%
Cocaine
35%
Meth
5%
Meth
8%
21%
Cocaine Rx DrugsTobacco Marijuana Alcohol
Rates of Use
Tobacco
Frequent use: 30 day use
4.6%
Of 8th
Graders in
Clark
County
9.1%
Of 10th
graders in
Clark
County
10.8%
Of 12th
graders in
Clark
County
Commonly Abused Drugs
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Painkillers/Opiates
Sedatives/Depressants
Stimulants
DXM/Cough Syrup
Pain Relievers
• Opioids similar to morphine and
heroin – Vicodin and Oxycontin are
two examples
• Users get feeling of euphoria
• Medicines can be misused by being
crushed and snorted
• Some users may transition to heroin
• Heroin substitutes, such as
methadone
Rx tranquilizers/sedatives
• Prescription medications that act as central
nervous system depressants. Sedatives are
“sleeping pills” and benzodiazepines are
"tranquilizers.“
• Can be prescribed for acute anxiety, tension and
sleep disorders and panic attacks.
• When abused, they are swallowed or injected.
Rx Stimulants
• Stimulants such as Adderall and Ritalin are in
same drug category as cocaine methamphetamine
• Prescribed for attention deficit / hyperactivity
disorder. When used as prescribed, can reduce
risk of drug addiction.
• Misused as a “study” drug.
• Published reports of parents permitting / providing
these drugs to kids.
Medicines with ‘DXM’
• Some over-the-counter cough and cold
medicines contain “dextromethorphan,”
or DXM
• Medicines are widely available –
significant potential for abuse. Abusers
take extremely large doses (bottles at a
time.)
Signs and
Symptoms
Pain relievers: Symptoms
–
–
–
–
–
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Drowsiness
Slurred speech
Constricted pupils
Shallow breathing
Nausea
Decreased heart rate, blood pressure and
respiration rate
– Constipation
– Decreased sexual interest/activity
– Dependence
Stimulants: Symptoms
—Loss of appetite / weight loss
—Inability to sleep / restlessness
—Feelings of hostility, distorted thinking, or
paranoia
—Irregular heartbeat or heart failure
—Increased heart rate/blood pressure
—Dangerously High Body Temperature
—Hallucinations
—Seizures
—Dependence and Tolerance
Sedatives: Symptoms
—Drowsiness/Sleepiness
—Slowed Breathing
—Confusion/Disorientation
—Reduced attention span
—Resembles alcohol intoxication
—Hallucinations
—Seizures
—Very Dangerous when mixed with Alcohol
Cough Medicine
•
•
•
•
•
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Dilated pupils
Dizziness
Fever
Hallucinations
High blood pressure
Hot and cold flashes
Psychotic episodes
Rash
Sweating
Three Moms
Rx Abuse and Development
Brain Development
• Besides infancy, puberty is a period of rapid
growth and brain development.
• Rx drug use can impair brain
development with no chance
of recovery of lost functions.
• Drug use during development can decrease
memory, school performance and test scores.
Brain development
95% of the brain develops by
age 6, with completion of the
final 5% by age
Frontal lobe is last to develop.
Frontal Lobe is responsible for: impulse control, judgment,
planning, goal setting and predicting consequences.
Why teens use:
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•
•
Easy to get from friends or at home
Seen as safer than other drugs, less stigma
Friends are doing it
Escape problems or self-medicate
Parents less aware of dangers
or less likely to disapprove
Rx Myths:
• It’s safer to abuse Rx
drugs than illicit drugs,
even if they’re not
prescribed by a doctor.
• Rx drugs have fewer side
effects and are not as
addictive.
• It’s okay to share
Pill Taking Society
• Rx medications are all around us; teens notice.
• Patients leave the doctor with a prescription inhand 7 out of 10 visits.
• Direct-to-consumer advertising on TV and in
magazines.
Rx Abuse:
“A Sticky Situation”
How to reduce Rx Abuse
When Talking about Rx Drugs:
“Denormalize” the behavior
– While 1 in 5 teens are abusing Rx drugs, 4 in 5
are not.
Debunk common myths
– Just as dangerous and addictive as other
substances; even “occasional use”
Determine rules and boundaries
– Set safety guidelines and controls in your
home.
– Be aware of your own behaviors, attitudes,
and language around Rx use.
Keeping Rx meds Safe:
Monitor all prescription and OTC medicines.
Safely Store and Secure medicines
Out of children’s reach and sight.
Consider locking them up.
Safely Dispose of old or
unused medicines.
Reduce Access: Safe Disposal
Throwing Rx drugs in the garbage
is not safe:
•Crime around stealing, using, and selling Rx
drugs has increased
•Drugs can be obtained illegally from your trash
•Drugs that go into the toilet end up in our
drinking water
Safe Medicine Return
You can take unwanted controlled meds to safe
disposal sites at all Sherriff’s and many Police
Precincts, including:
Battle Ground Police Department
Camas Police Department
Clark County Sheriff's Office West Precinct
Clark County's Sheriff's Office Central Precinct
Clark County Sheriff's Headquarters
La Center Police Department
Ridgefield Police Department
Washougal Police Department
For details visit: http://www.clark.wa.gov/recycle/recyclingA-Z.html
(Click on “M” for Medicine)
Who Can Make a Difference?
Who Influenced You?
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Parents
Grandparents, aunts/uncles, others
Teachers/Coaches
Friends/peers
School administrators
Guidance counselors
School nurses
School resource officers
Community-based healthcare professionals
Take Action
Legislative & Policy Efforts
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Federal Medicine Return Program
Statewide Medicine Return Program
Prescription Drug Monitoring Program
Education and support for MD’s and other
prescribers
 Treatment and prevention efforts
If you are concerned:
If you are concerned that someone you care
about might be abusing Rx drugs…
• School Nurse, Prevention/Intervention Specialist
or Counselor
• Clark County Alcohol & Drug Program
• WWW.SAMHSA.gov
• www.PreventClarkCounty.org
Resources Online:
Parents:
www.theantidrug.com
www.drugfree.com
Youth:
www.abovetheinfluence.org
www.sadd.org
Sources Used:
• Office on National Drug Control Policy, “Prescription for Danger: A
report on the troubling trend of prescription and over-the-counter drug
abuse among the nation’s teens”. January 2008.
• Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office email correspondence. 2009.
• Partnership for a Drug Free America. Partnership Attitude Tracking
Survey (PATS). 2006.
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA), “National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health”
(NHSDUH). 2008.
• SAMHSA , “Monitoring the Future Survey” (MTF). 2008
• Washington State Department of Health. “Washington State Healthy
Youth Survey”. 2008
• Washington State Department Of Social and Health Services, Division
of Alcohol and Substance Abuse. “Prescription Pain-Reliever Abuse
Among Teens”. 2008.
• Washington State Attorney General’s Office, “Prescription Drug Abuse
is our new epidemic”. August, 2009.