Can physicians be drug addicts?

In our society, drug addiction is a prominent problem. According to a number of media reports, 10 to 14 percent of Americans struggle with a drug problem. When we think of drug addicts, however, the images that are likely conjured are of dirty, disheveled individuals who live in dilapidated houses (or on the street) and are one step away from losing their lives, since they have already lost so much else.

However, there are a number of drug addicts who simply fly under the radar, and they have access to as many drugs as they like. They are doctors.

According to a dailybeast.com report, doctors who are drug addicts lead some of the most dark, yet brilliant and complicated lives. However, it is indicative of a serious disease that “allows for a great deal of self-pity and mischief.”

Perhaps the most infuriating point is how easily doctors can support their own habits. For example, an anesthesiologist can receive a drug from a surgical nurse, give some to a patient, them some to himself, then a little more to the patient, all without anyone knowing or noticing. However, this practice puts the patient at an incredible risk. After all, a physician whose mental faculties are compromised by a drug may not act in the same manner as a sober doctor. If this scenario comes into fruition, a doctor could be held liable for failing to use reasonable care.

In the meantime, it is imperative that physicians who are addicted to medicinal drugs receive help before an innocent patient is harmed.