On day two of Frostburg State University’s Appalachian Festival
John Temple, a West Virginia University Journalism Professor, shines the light
on a problem most in the audience can find a personal connection to. Presenting
on his third book American Pain, Temple dives into a world of greed, agony
and addicts.
John Temple, author of American Pain, presents statistics on overdose deaths between 1970 & 2007.
His story follows two brothers Chris and Jeff George, and
Doctor William Overstreet as they found a way to create a lucrative business
out of others need to feel nothing. In 2007 in Ft Lauderdale the three opened
up the South Florida Pain Clinic, writing prescriptions of high dose pain
medication to anyone who could give them an MRI. Local authorities watched as
this “Pill Mill” grew and others sprouted up in the state, each seeing 100 plus
patients a day.
The brothers and Dr. Overstreet were making thousands of
dollars by not only prescribing, but also filling prescriptions in house. Others
caught on to the trend and started to use these businesses for their own financial
gain. Quickly, vans from all over were being filled with addicts and making the
drive to Florida to see doctors that asked just enough questions to work for a
legitimate medical center. Travellers
had been coached in what aches to describe and what medicine to ask for by
those driving. As payment drivers took half of whatever prescription was
filled, loaded up and drove home.
Surprisingly, Temple explains that most of their customers
come directly from Appalachia. With 43% from Kentucky alone, a whole nation was
being reached. Temple found that taking the trip is “indicative of the level of
desperation most addicts feel” to obtain their next high. Becoming
dependent on painkillers is no different than addiction to the drugs we hear
about only on television. Temple was careful enough to not give away too much
more of his novel, but urged the audience to understand that “we need to stop
thinking these [pills and hard drugs] are a separate addiction.” The parallels
Temple drew between heroin and pill addiction shocked Madison Fell, a senior at
Frostburg. “It's so simple, anyone could become addicted to those things. I know
three or four people that just have [prescribed pain killers] in their rooms
right now.”
Western Maryland is fighting its own battle with addiction currently.
Becky Myers and Chris Delaney from the Allegany County Health Department
Behavioral Health Services presented immediately after Temple and confirmed what
most of the audience was thinking, this problem was not going anywhere. In 2014
there were 210 reported non-fatal overdoses in Allegany County, 39% were opioid
related, by July 2016, 234 non-fatal overdoses have been reported, 74% opioid
related.
The partnership between the community and the Department of
Health is vital to continue this battle. Naloxone, an over the counter an emergency
drug that reverses the effects of an overdose until professional medical help
arrives, will hopefully help the statistics of non-fatal overdoses. The Department
of Health has partnered to properly train others to use this drug. As of now 441
individuals have been trained, 156 of them are law enforcement. A local student
who has requested to remain anonymous commented, “My uncle went to a training
on that. He keeps a prescription in the house in case one of my cousins friends
OD’s.” As the epidemic continues it is safe to say this training will become a necessity
for all in the region.
To find out more about American Pain visit http://johntemplebooks.com/books/american-pain/
For more information about the Allegany County Health Department
Behavior Health Services and their fight visit http://www.prescribechangeallegany.org/
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