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Painkillers Are OK At Work - But Not Marijuana?
06-15-07|courant|MICHELLE GARDELLA

I think I will send a nice joint to the producers of the television show "House" and invite them to have their main character drop the pills and turn to using medicinal marijuana instead. I wonder what the reaction of the public would be to see their award-winning doctor toking from a bong five to 10 times an episode?

Recently, I watched an episode of "House," a popular show broadcast on Fox. Throughout the show, the main character, Dr. House, popped pain pill after pain pill. During a commercial break I turned to my husband and asked, "Is that legal? Can you take prescription strength pain medication while on the job?" He shrugged. Turns out, you can as long as you have a valid prescription.

This sounded reasonable enough, until I glanced at a USA Today news headline this morning: "Employers Grapple with Medical Marijuana Use." Wait? How does that make sense? Pills are OK but pot is not?

It's the same discussion that is going on at the Capitol in Hartford where the General Assembly just passed a bill that would let seriously ill people use marijuana to ease the pain of particular diseases or to moderate the side effects of medical treatments. All that is needed is the signature of Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who has been coy about whether she will sign the bill. The governor should stop waffling and sign the bill - it could bring relief to hundreds of state residents.

According to the article I read, more than 30,000 Americans use medical marijuana for pain and nausea relief. With the growing number of states allowing the use of this natural herb for medicinal purposes, that number is expected to grow and grow. Which raises concern in many companies as mentioned in the USA Today article. "Few disputes about medical marijuana's impact on the workplace have made it to court, but many employers say they would have concerns if a worker needed marijuana treatments."

I couldn't believe what I was reading, it seemed so hypocritical, and so I went where every liberal goes for reliable news: Fox. And there it was on their Internet home page: a two-minute video report on the issue. I heard it with my own ears, and saw it with my own eyes: company owners saying that they will fire employees using medicinal marijuana. They are instituting drug testing, which won't tell where the employee has used marijuana, like at home when in pain for example, but only if they have it in their system.

Why is the focus always on pot? What the heck is everyone so afraid of? The side effects? Dizziness, lightheadedness, trouble with coordination, feelings of euphoria, difficulty speaking and concentrating, extreme sleepiness. Oh wait; those are the side effects for pain pills. So, clearly it isn't the side effects of marijuana that have employers scared, because if it was, then they would also want to eradicate the use of any pain medication; period.

Could it be the fear of addiction? The federal Drug Enforcement Administration defines marijuana as a, "Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Schedule I drugs are classified as having a high potential for abuse."

But wait, the Drug Enforcement Administration also says, "The non-medical use of prescription drugs has become an increasingly widespread and serious problem in the United States. A new generation of high dose, extended release, opioid pain medications have taken the existing threat to a new level. The abuse and diversion statistics are alarming, and the increased popularity of these prescription drugs creates even greater challenges for the medical and law enforcement communities. While these new drugs have proved effective in the treatment of chronic pain, they also offer equally increased risks of abuse and diversion." Wow, that sounds serious.

What is the difference between a prescription for Vicodin and a prescription for marijuana in the eyes of the employer? Seriously, I want to know. And why, with all the data screaming so loudly otherwise, is pot thrown in a class of evil all on its own? It's a beautiful plant that grows from the earth just like dandelions and oak trees, and yet it has the power to evoke widespread panic in the government and the public.

And yet, pharmaceutical companies continue to chase record high (pun intended) profits and economic growth while everyone watches without a flinch.

 

Buzzby

I hate to say it, but I disagree. I've used prescription pain meds and they had very little effect on my mental state at the prescribed dosage. All they did was take the edge off my pain. Marijuana has a much more profound effect on my mental state. My short-term memory gets very chancy. I'm easily distracted. I work very slowly. I get lost in a train of thought and stare off into space.

In short, I could go to work with only a minor loss in efficiency on Vicodin. If I smoked enough weed to have any effect on my pain, I'd be entirely useless.

The way anyone reacts to any med is very idiosyncratic. Perhaps marijuana effects other people less than it effects me and pain pills would effect them more. For me, pain pills are primarily physical and only slightly mental. Marijuana is the other way around.

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troublemaker_42

While I agree with your viewpoint to a degree, anyone familiar with "House" would question whether or not Dr. House's use of Vicodin is A) Entirely medically necessaary and B) within the normal prescription dosages. This same "DR" spiked a co-worker's coffee with amphetamine......he's not exactly a model for responsible drug usage. An entertaining show nonetheless, but this person isn't a posterchild for "recommended dosages" by any means. He takes Vicodin because he's an addict, simply put. The comparison put forth in the original postreally has no basis in reality.....to be comparable, the person would be smoking marijuana on the job becasue he/she is addicted, not for its medicinal benefits......and, because television fictions don't necessarily need to reflect reality in any way

reggie_the_dog

I rarely if ever take pills; vicodin would lay me out. Now a big bong of grass before work, seeing as I smoke all the time, would have less negative effect on me. But I am half of your age Buzzby, so perhaps that will change in 25 years or so.

feedyourhead

Rx painkillers don't have an effect on me either. . . i'm tons higher when i smoke pot than when i take a vicodin or lortab.

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dedbr

I really think the whole idea is, if it's prescribed, and as long as you're not smoking at work, it shouldn't make any difference.....

No one should be drunk or stoned from anything in a dangerous job, but there are jobs I've had that being stoned seemed to be a pre-requisite for the position....

Enjoy.......


Some Where In Ded Land.......

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nerphroll

House IS an addict, so though the article has it a little skewed, the point is that he is NOT a good example of responsible prescription medication use. And I do agree with Buzzby that we are all different in our abilities to work at a job while high or stoned. I, too, would be completely useless stoned. But maybe I wouldn't be if I were constantly using marijuana for chronic medical reasons.
The main point is that whether it be opiates or marijuana, the usage should be responsible, and if usage of the substance starts to interfere with one's work performance and/or safety, then direct attention could be given to that individual in terms of discipline, or counseling.

Buzzby

When an addictive drug is prescribed, tolerance has to be taken into consideration. If one Vicodin every four hours is an effective dose initially, as tolerance develops that dosage level will no longer do the job and will have to be increased. My doctor doubled the dose of a tolerance-producing prescription last week because after two years the original dose didn't do the job.

It's not that simple. Needing a painkiller for pain and being addicted to it are not mutually exclusive. People who are on serious pain meds for an extended period will develop an addiction and will require an increased dosage to maintain the analgesic effect. It has nothing to do with taking the drug to get high. Being on a high dose of opiate pain killers does not necessarily correlate with getting high. As tolerance develops, all the increased dosage does is preserve the same level of pain relief. If Dr. House is getting high, I'd hate to see him when he's low. When I'm high, I'm always in a better mood than he ever is.

Opiates are very well tolerated. As long as a reasonable dosage is maintained, the only negative side effect is constipation. Addicts can live a long and healthy life. You might be taking a dose that would kill someone without tolerance, but all it does for you is kill the pain.

I'd say the issue is impairment, not addiction. It's dosage-related and tolerance-related. If I had a high enough tolerance, fifteen Vicodin a day wouldn't impair my performance. With no tolerance, one Vicodin would kill the pain and two would impair my performance slightly. With no tolerance, half a joint of medical-grade marijuana would knock me on my ass.

Buzzby

I don't think it's particularly age-related. I don't smoke all the time. On an average day I'll vape maybe a third of a gram of mids. Even at that level I periodically have to take a break because I'd need more than that dose to get the effect I desire. I get pretty high on that 1/3 gram because I keep my tolerance near zero.

When I used to smoke a lot, I didn't enjoy it as much. When I never took enough time off to get straight, getting high wasn't as much fun.

dedbr

If your using herb for pain relief, you will notice the effect that Buzzby stated. You will need to increase the dosage to get the same effect.

I have used herb for chronic back pain, and over the years I've noticed that only the best will do now, or I have to smoke all the time to maintain that relief. It's really a pleasure to find some herb that really gets me high. I grow my own, but after a few months of the same thing, your definately ready for something different to smoke.

Opiates were the same way for me.......I couldn't get enough when I finally quit them. The doctor wanted to give me some methadone, but I just took Vicodins. No use to take anything any stronger. It won't work as well as herb does anyway........


Some Where In Ded Land....But we all know that.....