Anonymous
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Did anyone see this? If so, what did you think?
For those that didn't, there was a guy in the ER demanding pain meds and the doc wrote a script for some 5 or 7.5 hydro, IIRC. They called him a 'drug seeker' and all the other stuff that goes with it. The guy lost his cool, knocked some stuff and some people over and then left. He came back later with a gun and had a gun to one of the docs head and demanded a shot of Demerol (I think it was Demerol or either Morphine). The nurse brought a bunch of it out and asked him how much he wanted, she was talking about giving him all the vials he wanted, but he said he only wanted his 'regular shot' and it was about 100-150 mg.
After he left, the docs were saying stuff like "don't make the drug seekers mad next time", etc. To me the writers were giving the impression this guy was not drug seeking for a thrill, but drug seeking for legit pain relief. The reason I say that is because when the nurse asked how much he wanted, he just said he wanted the one shot.
When people are in pain I guess we are 'drug seekers' because we are looking to stop our pain, and few docs understand that part of it.
Of those that saw that episode, what impressions did you get? A person that hasn't dealt with chronic pain might not have seen what I saw in that. If the writers were trying to show that person as a legit pain need then that is really a step in the right direction. With chronic, severe pain I can understand losing it like the guy did.
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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The Med shows on TV are really giving the drugseeker thing a go aren't they.
On MD's last week, a neighbor of one of the Docs came in for vicodin.
Kept saying he wanted to see that Doc. He was in pain and needed vicodin. The one Doc called the other Doc and said hey do you know this guy. They called him (the patient)a YODA( A yuppie on Drugs or alcohol). Towards the end of the episode the Doc gave him a script for 10 vicodin, The guy changed the script to 40 got it filled and downed a bunch as he left the hospital. Then all the sudden the hospital was swamped with accident victims. The patient had run down a lot of people at the bus stop outside the hospital.
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Trampy
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/02/02
Posts: 1222
Loc: Southwest U.S.
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I saw it. He was asking for 150 mg of Demerol in an i.v. shot. When Abby went to the cabinet to get it i was afraid for her (she's my fave) that she would give him the wrong drug and he'd notice. And sure enough he asked to see the bottle (pointing a gun at Ching Mai's head the whole time) before Abby filled the needle ... with 400 mg ... which made him feel good for a while and then he passed out.
Yes, he didn't want to steal the bottle. He just wanted relief .. but i think it was withdrawal pain that he was seeking relief from. And he woke up in handcuffs and restraints. And i doubt he's gonna be getting Demerol shots in jail.
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Your mileage may vary ...
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ImodiumAD
Member
Reged: 06/26/02
Posts: 168
Loc: Calif, Bakersfield
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Going to jail for one demerol shot..jezus.....If your that horribly desperate just go buy some junk or fentanyl on the street or something......I know its bad advice but hey, its beter than pullin a gun in a E.R.
LoL, Could you imagine the sight of him holding the gun in his hand while they bend down and IM the Demerol in his hip??....oh man the sight.....
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Anonymous
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They did it in the arm. 
Now I don't remember in this show the guy going to jail, etc. I remember him just walking out and nothing else was shown about him....not unles I was out of the room for a minute or something.
But.....I'm not sure people got the point of what I was asking. It was my impression the writers were trying to show him as a legit person in pain since he only wanted 1 shot when he could have had several vials of the drug.
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toe
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 10/09/02
Posts: 1422
Loc: MidWest USA
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It's been my opinion that these shows have been trying to advocate a different system of care for drug addicts than is current in the US. It's not a vendetta against the pain patients. It's a plea that drug addicts in desperate need should have some other recourse than making explosive demands in the ER.
The guy was obviously- to you, me, and anyone in the medical profession- a drug addict. ER, at least, have always striven for accuracy in their show. Sometimes they flop a little with it, but it is pretty clear that they character they were portraying here was a drug addict.
I could be wrong. . . can I see a show of hands amongst the chronic pain patients here who have stormed an emergency room with a firearm?
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"It's the end of the World as We Know it. . ."
-REM "and I'm seeking asylum in Canada"-toe
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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In reply to:
I could be wrong. . . can I see a show of hands amongst the chronic pain patients here who have stormed an emergency room with a firearm?
I don't know any that have but I do know the feeling of thinking you have to do something drastic to just get some kind of pain control. Being a woman with migraines is not easy. You hear a whole bunch of "it's just a headache and you are gonna have to learn to deal with a little bit of pain". That can send you through the roof. Another favorite is "take Extra Strength Tylenol for your bad headaches." You know if I had a headache that Tylenol would help it doesn't even bother me. When you have migraines a lot of docs just think you are a drug seeker.
I understand being at the point where you think if someone doesn't help you then you have to do something drastic.
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toe
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 10/09/02
Posts: 1422
Loc: MidWest USA
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Of course, you feel like you need to do something drastic. Trust me, I have to rely upon a University Student Medical Plan (I'm a TA, but not considered an "employee")
I fell down the stairs last year and sprained my ankle. It was a nasty sprain, of the variety where any sense of pressure on the foot literally causes you to collapse. Not even from the pain, but from the pure non-functionality of the joint. The doctor advised me to take some "Nuprin."
Have you spotted nuprin in any local pharmacies lately? This guy was at least ten years out of date with OTC drugs (in name, at least).
I came back and harassed him (politely) explaining that I'd been taking ibuprophen and it t'weren't doing jacksh7t. He relented to give me a script for 15 ultram to go along with my 2 week confinement to crutches. Yeah, that ultram really helped with my traumatic joint injury. Ahem.
Then again, I don't have a gun.
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"It's the end of the World as We Know it. . ."
-REM "and I'm seeking asylum in Canada"-toe
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LumbarSpasm
Silent Chaos
Reged: 05/07/02
Posts: 1538
Loc: USA
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Maybe the next show could have an interesting plot...
Woman tries to get Soma from Walgreens and is shot dead in front of 14 month old child by a police officer.
Rah Rah Go Good Guys!
Another win for the war on drugs!
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LumbarSpasm
Or just a pain in the butt?!
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bostonjoe
Member
Reged: 12/20/01
Posts: 106
Loc: South Carolina
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I got the impression that the guy was a drug seeker. He was known in the ER when he first started asking. I also think when he told Abby he only wanted his shot as opposed to a bunch of demerol he was making a point to the medical team that he was for real but in reality was not. This topic is a consistent one on ER Carter's addiction after he was stabbed, Mark Greene's addiction after he was attacked. It's a big part of being in an ER doc weeding out the addicts vs the true people in pain. People talk about horror stories about being in pain and being offered aspirin. How about my kidney stone two months ago when the doc suggested "trying" it on ibuprofen and seeing if that manages the pain. While I'm rolling on the bed in pain and throwing up. Then when I told them no way the nurse saying I had to give them a urine specimen before the would give me anything stronger. Now people wonder why we use online pharmacies? Duh!!!
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headachehannah
Member
Reged: 06/16/02
Posts: 124
Loc: USA
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The doc that suggested Nuprin - did he happen to work at the University Death Center? OOPS - I meant health center... 
I went to WIU, and we had Beu Health Center... Called by the students affectionately as the death center.
About the whole Emergency Room - Drug Seeker thing, if I ever find myself in the position of having to go to the local ER again after the last horrible experience I had, I will remember to take with me 2 pieces of paper.
They aren't my medical records - they have them at that hospital.
They are letters of apology I received from the Director of Emergency Medicine and the Head of Nursing for Emergency Services - I think that was her title.
It was horrible, and I cried and cried. The migraine pain was enough to make me think I was actually going to die. The triage nurse asked if I had been there before (yes) and what they had given me (demerol). Two questions she asked, two truthful answers. At that point she made a judgement about me, and decided (quite wrong) that I was some sort of junkie.
It went downhill from there.
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Jeremiah
Agape GrandParent
Reged: 07/14/02
Posts: 705
Loc: U.S.A.
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Did you see the daytime show a few weeks back where an older lady was in the ER for pain relief and told Carol,"NSAIDS and Ibuprofen dont work,but I have taken a medicine that starts with a "D" that worked". Carol said, "Demerol?" and the pt replied,"Yes,thats it!" Carol looked up her old charts and determined she was 'hooked on demerol'.This was a grandmother. Are they attempting to show drug abuse has no age limit?
J.
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I can't see me lovin nobody but you,for all my life
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