Pubdate: Wed, 20 Jan 2016
Source: StarPhoenix, The (CN SN)
Copyright: 2016 The StarPhoenix
Contact:  http://thestarphoenix.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/400
Author: Jonathan Charlton
Page: A3

SHOULD ANTI-OVERDOSE DRUG BE PRESCRIBED TO ADDICT'S FAMILY?

An addictions specialist wants Saskatchewan doctors to be able to 
prescribe naloxone to family and agencies close to the patients who 
need the life-saving drug.

"In order to be in-line with the evidence and actually to be more 
effective in terms of treating opioid overdoses and preventing 
overdose deaths, we would like to be able to prescribe it to people 
associated with users in a more evidence-based and practical 
approach," Dr. Peter Butt said.

He has asked the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan 
to support the idea, which the college will consider at its Friday 
meeting. This would allow doctors, and perhaps nurse practitioners, 
to prescribe with a clear conscience, Butt said.

Too-large doses of opiates can suppress breathing, potentially 
leading to brain damage and death. Naloxone, the antidote, binds to 
opioid receptors in the brain, temporarily reversing the overdose.

The Saskatoon Health Region started a pilot project last November in 
which satchels containing two doses of the drug were made available 
at Mayfair Drugs to people who use opiates such as fentanyl, 
morphine, heroin, methadone and oxycodone.

However, a person suffering an overdose is unable to self-administer 
the drug, and the World Health Organization recommends it be given to 
friends, associates and families of users to be administered in the 
case of an overdose, Butt said. It could also be stocked at police 
cells or shelters, he said.

Health Canada is moving toward making it non-prescription, but it 
still requires training to use, he said.

If the drug is administered when a person is not having an overdose, 
it does no harm, he said.

"At this point, I don't see a downside. I don't see a high level of risk here."

Bryan Salte, the college's associate registrar, said he can't think 
of a legal reason it can't be done, but couldn't comment on whether 
it was a good or bad idea. That will be up to the college council, 
and he's not sure how they'll react. He said there are concerns about 
patient confidentiality and increasing the availability of the drug.

Normally, doctors only prescribe to their patients for a current 
condition, not to someone else for an event that might or might not 
happen to that patient, Salte said.

"It's not the traditional way medicine is practised, so I really 
don't know what the response from council is going to be - whether 
they are going to call for more study, whether they're going to say 
it's a great idea, let's all support this, whether they're going to 
ask for more information about the possible misuse of naloxone."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom