UK TV PROGRAMME ABOUT OVER PRESCRIPTION OF DRUGS

HOly Crap!!!!

 

Last night (and tonight I think) there was a programme on TV called 'The Doctor Who CAme Off Drugs'. It was prime time BBC1!!!!! It is about a doctor who thinks that we are all overmedicated and as a result all sick with iatrogenic illnesses. He is pulling people off the drugs and making a programme about it.

 

AT BLOODY LAST someone is looking outside the box.

 

I havent watched it yet but just about to. It looks REALLLY promising.

 

...hope it's not a disappointment.

Be nice if they had prime time shows like that in the USA.

HOly Crap!!!!

 

Last night (and tonight I think) there was a programme on TV called 'The Doctor Who CAme Off Drugs'. It was prime time BBC1!!!!! It is about a doctor who thinks that we are all overmedicated and as a result all sick with iatrogenic illnesses. He is pulling people off the drugs and making a programme about it.

 

AT BLOODY LAST someone is looking outside the box.

 

I havent watched it yet but just about to. It looks REALLLY promising.

 

...hope it's not a disappointment.

Cheers  Rubikscube   I'm going to watch it on BBC Iplayer , I just hope that whoever it is explains PROPERLY you can't just pull people off and the real consequences. I'm a bit concerned, well VERY if whoever it is hasn't then GP's will panic and start bloody CT'ing people 

 

 

Love Nova xxx  :smitten:

Sorry folk but I watched it last night and was very disappointed as so far it's an opportunity missed as Benzos not included. Won't say anymore but will reserve judgement until after the 2nd episode on Sept 22nd.

Here is a link, but it only works in UK. I will keep looking.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b07w532p/the-doctor-who-gave-up-drugs-episode-1

I actually thought the programme was very valuable.  It highlighted just what a huge problem the over-prescribing of medication has become here in the UK. 

 

The doctor who was featured is a specialist in infectious medicine, not a GP.  He focused on antibiotics, painkillers and anti-depressants.  I was amazed that a GP practice had agreed that he could come into their practice and see some of their patients and look at their prescribing rates.  The GPs agreed that a reduction in prescribing would be a good thing, in principle 

 

So the specialist saw patients with one of the GPs and discovered how difficult it was to refuse to give patients antibiotics because the GP has no way of knowing for sure if infections are bacterial or not.  So the specialist brought in a machine that could analyse a blood test and tell the GP whether to not the patient had a virus or not  The GPs in the practice then said they could not afford to buy the machine and they did not have time to do the tests.  And each GP only has 10 minutes to see a patient and that is always an issue.  The NHS here is in a pretty sorry state due to cutbacks in funding and new solutions need to be found.

 

The programme then focused on two patients - one on painkillers for 20 years for back/shoulder pain.  Gave her a fortnight's supply of painkillers, a mixture of drugs and placebos and asked her to keep a pain chart.  Her level of pain went up and down whether or not she was on painkillers or placebo so she agreed to stop taking them and started an exercise regime which helped greatly.

Then a young woman on A/Ds wanted to give them up.  Suggested she take up exercise and try to taper off the drugs. 

 

There is to be a second episode.  :thumbsup:

 

I just see this as an awareness raising exercise and hopefully educating the public.  There seems to be a growing awareness among the medical profession that over-prescribing is now a huge issue.  It will take a long time before solutions are agreed upon and put into action.

 

Sorry if this is a bit too much information.

 

Fiona 

 

An additional piece of information - my fellow campaigner, Ann Kelly, has managed to secure a face-to-face meeting with the Cabinet Secretary for Health and the Chief Medical Officer in Scotland at the end of October.  Ann has been left severely disabled as a result of anti-depressants so that will be her focus and she will be doing everything she can to press upon these two influential women the harm that these drugs can inflict on patients.  There is a Mental Health Strategy out for consultation here at the moment so hopefully that will produce something fruitful with less reliance on medication.

 

Fiona 

I actually thought the programme was very valuable.  It highlighted just what a huge problem the over-prescribing of medication has become here in the UK. 

 

The doctor who was featured is a specialist in infectious medicine, not a GP.  He focused on antibiotics, painkillers and anti-depressants.  I was amazed that a GP practice had agreed that he could come into their practice and see some of their patients and look at their prescribing rates.  The GPs agreed that a reduction in prescribing would be a good thing, in principle 

 

So the specialist saw patients with one of the GPs and discovered how difficult it was to refuse to give patients antibiotics because the GP has no way of knowing for sure if infections are bacterial or not.  So the specialist brought in a machine that could analyse a blood test and tell the GP whether to not the patient had a virus or not  The GPs in the practice then said they could not afford to buy the machine and they did not have time to do the tests.  And each GP only has 10 minutes to see a patient and that is always an issue.  The NHS here is in a pretty sorry state due to cutbacks in funding and new solutions need to be found.

 

The programme then focused on two patients - one on painkillers for 20 years for back/shoulder pain.  Gave her a fortnight's supply of painkillers, a mixture of drugs and placebos and asked her to keep a pain chart.  Her level of pain went up and down whether or not she was on painkillers or placebo so she agreed to stop taking them and started an exercise regime which helped greatly.

Then a young woman on A/Ds wanted to give them up.  Suggested she take up exercise and try to taper off the drugs. 

 

There is to be a second episode.  :thumbsup:

 

I just see this as an awareness raising exercise and hopefully educating the public.  There seems to be a growing awareness among the medical profession that over-prescribing is now a huge issue.  It will take a long time before solutions are agreed upon and put into action.

 

Sorry if this is a bit too much information.

 

Fiona 

 

Thanks for the summary. These types of TV shows will help raise awareness to the perils of pills.

 

Sadly in North America it's still very much a pill pushing society. My GP did tell me that there is a medical conference on benzos being held locally next month, but it's only for doctors.

I wonder what the focus of the conference will be.  Perhaps it is a good sign.  :thumbsup:

lookingforward,  Whilst I agree  the highlighting of any over prescribing is a good sign, it's just a damned shame that the very type of drugs that are being referred to as causing a 'World epidemic' with all the suffering they bring  are not at the top of the list for a programme such as this - as said = it's a missed opportunity if the Benzo and the latest additions to the psychotropic range of drugs being wildly and negligently over prescribed are not included in this programme 'very valuable' though it may be. 

I know.  The next episode may say more about anti depressants.  :thumbsup:

Sounds very encouraging!  Thanks for sharing, Rubik, and for the summary, Fiona!