When my phone rings, you never know what is going to “come to light”. Got a phone call from a pt that is being seen by a prescriber within the Franciscan Health System The pt’s PCP has been reducing the pt’s opiates that the pt had been using for years in treating chronic pain caused by a incurable genetic disease.
The prescriber told the pt – NO MORE OPIATES – and showed the pt a letter the prescriber had received from the corporation’s HQ… that plainly stated that any employed prescriber found to be prescribing opiates to pts… WOULD BE FIRED…
Apparently this LARGE CORPORATE HEALTHCARE PROVIDER has decided that within their 569 different centers… chronic pain pts are PERSONA NON GRATA.
Whoever from this corporation’s HQ who come up with this decision of denial of care – and put it in writing.. apparently has never had a concern about pt abuse, denial of care, medical battery, discrimination under the Americans with Disability Act and Civil Rights Act and pt abandonment.
Not to mention the fact that this pt is probably going to be bed/chair/house confined and the pt’s spouse could experience the “loss of companionship”
Of course, is the corporation going to have any responsibility if any of these chronic pain pts commits suicide as a result of their chronic pain treatments being withdrawn ? No telling how many pts are being impacted since this healthcare provider – according to their website – has 569 different locations… so there could be TENS OF THOUSANDS OF CHRONIC PAIN PTS that are being affected.
This is not the first corporation that I have heard about … telling their employed prescribers to stop prescribing opiates to chronic pain pts. One pt I heard from recently, from a different hospital system, was discharged from a specialist with a “10 days supply of opiates”.. after being on around 300+ MME for several years…
While it highly unlikely that the DEA will intervene in these issues because they have no legal authority concerning pts not getting proper therapy… even though many of their policies and procedures are the genesis behind what is happening to chronic pain pts.
Time will tell if any law firm will step up to the plate to seek justice for those chronic pain pts that are being harmed or for the families left behind because chronic pain pts have committed suicide because of lack of pain management and can no longer stand their unrelenting pain and chose the only option that they have left to them to “silence their pain permanently”.
After all, these large healthcare corporations should have some “very deep pockets” and that is the normal target of law firms when corporations have harmed people with the products/services that they provide.
Should chronic pain pts start filing complaints with the states’ Medical Licensing Boards for prescribers failing to meet best practices and standard of care and allowing employers to dictate how they will “practice medicine”… could this be considered UNPROFESSIONAL CONDUCT.
Filed under: General Problems
Thank you Connie! Where are our Dr.s to help us and say enough is enough?
This story is heartbreaking and shows how the medical profession is allowing corporate and government agencies to dictate medical decisions that they cannot possibly understand. More doctors need to stand up and say “ENOUGH”! We as cpp will not be listened to since we’re seen as worse than street addicts.