1

Advancements in health care and the increased effectiveness of treatments

and medications have, as one would expect, improved significantly as time has

gone on. Far from the time of basic, home-made remedies, we now live in a world

dominated and almost overloaded by new prescription medications. It seems like

everywhere we turn, there is a new pill or new plan that we are put on for every

single possible ailment or slight problem with our physiology. These advancements

are without a doubt beneficial in many ways to human society as a whole, solving

numerous problems and giving some people the chance to live normal lives who

otherwise couldn’t. Unfortunately, prescription medications are causing major

issues as a result of their abundance in our lives today. As with almost any new

thing, people have found ways to take these medications and use them in ways that

they were certainly not meant to be used. Specifically, there has been a notable

spike in the number of children and teenagers – as well as some people across all

age spectrums – that are using prescription drugs as their choice method of getting

high or simply in ways not originally intended by their creators. While drug abuse by

teenagers as a whole has steadily decreased over the last decade, the use of

prescription medications in inappropriate ways has remained at a constant level.

More and more often, teens are turning to the family medicine cabinet to get high

as a result of its ease, convenience, and relative discretion. This startling trend

brings the value of prescription drugs, at the very least in relation to kids,

teenagers, and irresponsible individuals, into question. In reality, many of the

prescription drugs used in American households are being abused and should not

be allowed in public schools unless deemed absolutely necessary, as they pose a

significant danger and threat to the safety of children and their peers. Care must

also be taken to assure that people of all ages who may be more prone to
prescription drug abuse, or those with a history of problems, are sufficiently

screened and regulated to ensure that the population as a whole stays in good
Stewart Wenner - 2
health.

Today, prescription medications are slowly beginning to take the place of the

once more common “street drugs” such as marijuana, a trend summarized

effectively by the fact according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health

2004 data, around 9% of kids aged 12 to 17 used medications for a purpose other

than its original intent. The same survey uncovered evidence of teens not only

using medication for themselves, but also high percentages of sharing and selling

going on in schools (Boyd). The same kids using and sharing prescription

medications were found to be more likely to move on to other illicit drugs such as

marijuana and alcohol, supporting the idea that these medications may serve as

gateway drugs to further abuse (Boyd). Teenagers who abuse prescription drugs

have been found to be much more likely to use these other drugs (including five

times more likely to use marijuana). A significant research project performed by the

National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) had similar findings,

revealing that prescription drug abuse was more common that the use of any other

drug except for marijuana, with medications being used by 15 million Americans in

2003. A study performed at a university in Georgia shows that just as many

students are using prescription drugs as self-medication as they do alcohol.

According to Joseph A. Califano Jr., chairman of CASA, the group thinks that “the

country has got to deal with this problem, because the reality is we are seeing a

tremendous increase in prescription drug abuse, particularly in young people”(Kirn).

Of the people abusing prescription drugs, as Mr. Califano suggests, the most

significant increase in abuse over a ten year period occurred in the adolescent
group, with an increase of over 200% from 1992 to 2003. While prescription drug

use –and abuse – used to be linked more to the middle-aged and older age groups,

“[the new generation] is not waiting until middle age to add prescription pill-

popping to its list of abuses” (Petkas).

There are a number of factors and influences that are driving teens to take

advantage of the drugs that they have at their fingertips; a combination of school

and parent pressure leads many kids to feel that the abuse of drugs is their only

way to escape from the stress they feel. No matter what the cause is, the trend and

its effects on the students are undeniable. There isn’t one single type or brand of

prescription drugs that is being abused. In reality, quite a few different drugs are in

the every-day lingo of kids in many schools. “[Students use] Aderrall to focus before

class, Xanax before a presentation or OxyContin to have a good time” (Petkas).

While these particular drugs are more popular on college campuses, in many

instances they trickle down to their high school counterparts. The main desirable

effects of the drugs abused most by students are increased concentration or better

moods – both of which can be attained, but at the expense of a number of

detrimental side effects. Students can experience flushing, tremors, and

hallucination, as well as “more severe side effects [such as] violent behavior and

aggression, or even strange, incessant and restless behavior” (Petkas). While the

use of these prescription drugs may be worth it to some students in the short run,

looking at the big picture of addiction and the deterioration of healthy lifestyles

reveals that the overall effects of this abuse are certainly not positive. Kids do not

realize many of the dangers involved with prescription drug abuse, and as a result

are easily lured into a false sense of security when using the medications. Mixing

medications with other drugs such as alcohol is occurring more and more often, and
 Stewart Wenner - 3

causing even more problems. The problem clearly exists, but the reasons why it

happens and how to solve it are questions that have not been answered.

The startling trend of abuse has been blamed on both the patients and the

professionals who prescribe or distribute the medications, but there is no way to pin

the whole problem on one group. Though patients are obviously the individuals who

end up making the decision whether or not to abuse their medication, there is much

more in play than one might think. The CASA survey found that around half of

physicians and pharmacists blamed the patients for the abuse that occurred, but

around 40% of the same group admitted not checking their patients’ medical

records or history of drug abuse (Kirn). Thus, it is not entirely the fault of the people

who abuse the drugs, as others should be working to ensure that prescription drugs

aren’t in their hands in the first place. The high number of teens abusing

prescription drugs results not only from prescriptions for the kids themselves but

also from kids taking medications from their parents and others. Based on surveys

and trends, it is clear that “adolescents do not view prescription drugs with the

same reservations that they view illegal substances such as marijuana and cocaine”

(Kirn). Because teens see these prescription drugs all around them – from their

peers to their parents – the fact that the drugs are illegal to share and abuse is not

as clear or apparent to them. While many health courses and programs throughout

the nation – both in schools and in general communities – offer information about

alcohol and “street drug” prevention, little attention is often paid to prescription

drugs. Small lapses of judgment or foresight such as this are most likely what lead

to the feelings of indifference that a large number of kids and teens have towards

the prescription drug scene.

 Stewart Wenner - 4

The problem is not confined solely to adolescents, as many tend to overlook.

Thousands of people from every possible age group abuse prescription drugs every

day, though it may not even be a conscious decision. Whether it be a few friends

sharing prescriptions with each other or simply someone who doesn’t know the

proper guidelines and rules to follow, drug abuse like this is constantly going on.

People don’t seem to realize that prescription drugs are prescribed for a reason:

they can be very dangerous and potentially fatal if taken in the wrong way or given

to the wrong person. Medication-sharing can result in “unanticipated side effects,

complications of incorrect use, drug-drug interactions, antibiotic resistance, and

addiction or misuse related to the addictive properties of some medications”

(Petersen). A study performed in 2006 that specifically targeted women of

reproductive ages (who, due to the possibility of pregnancy, are even more at risk

of negative effects) determined that as much as one-third of women aged 18-44

may be sharing prescription medications regularly. The sharing wasn’t only limited

to women though, as 28.44% of women and 26.5% of men in the study admitted to

borrowing or sharing prescription medications at some point in their life. The main

conclusion of the study stated that “even though prescription medication borrowing

and sharing have been suspected to occur frequently, this is the first study of which

we are aware that describes the prevalence of these behaviors among adults”

(Petersen). Though the study did not investigate reasons why the people surveyed

may have shared or borrowed their medications, its conclusions suggested that

“market forces, such as healthcare access, timely availability, and pharmacy

accessibility” should be examined as potential sources of problems (Petersen). The

researchers also recommended that risks of medication-sharing be discussed at

length by the prescriber and patient in order to make sure that there were no
 Stewart Wenner - 5

misunderstandings that could lead to problems (Petersen). This particular study is

important in that it gives a good idea of some of the potential dangers involved in

prescription drug abuse. If a woman of reproductive age was to become pregnant

soon after or during a time when she borrowed a medication from a friend, there

could be serious damage done to the developing fetus. Thus, not only can

medication-sharing be damaging to the “primary abuser’s” health, but also to those

nearby (in every sense of the word).

The elderly, a group not often considered to be prescription drug-abusers, are

actually at significant risk due to possible mental deterioration, lapses in judgment,

or memory loss. In fact, “substance abuse among the elderly is relatively common

but often remains undetected or ignored by health and social workers” (Jinks). The

effects of the aging process are significant enough to result in more cases of abuse

than one might expect. In one study, performed among the clientele of Elderly

Services of Spokane, about five percent of the caseload was affected by prescription

drug abuse, 92% of whom had been abusing the drugs for at least five years (Jinks).

While it may not seem like an incredible figure, the fact that any people of that age

are not following guidelines – guidelines that are critical to their health – is

shocking. The subjects in question abused a variety of drugs, ranging from sedative-

hypnotics to analgesics. The elderly may be at an elevated risk as a result of the

numerous medications they may have to take, as some people are instructed to use

dozens of pills a week. “In the United States, adults older than 65 years now take a

median of five medications per day,” which is quite a lot by any standards (Murphy).

According to Terrence E. Murphy, PhD, of the Yale School of Medicine, “several

studies have linked the use of multiple medications with decreased adherence and

increased risk of adverse events”. In general, the older population groups in the
 Stewart Wenner - 6

United States face many difficulties in terms of multiple medications and

determining how to balance out the risks and benefits; changing the way

prescription medications are approached by both the patients and prescribers might

be able to help the situation.

It is difficult to argue that prescription drugs by themselves are bad things. It

is simply the effect that they are having on our society that can appear quite

negative. The developments that have been made over the years in terms of

medical advancements and improving health care cannot be debated; as a whole,

American society has become much more “healthy”. In individual and controlled

cases, prescription drugs are certainly a beneficial element. Only when American

society becomes massively over-prescribed do the negative aspects finally show. As

Nortin M. Hadler, M.D., puts it, “We are becoming increasingly medicalized, made to

think that all life’s challenges demand clinical intervention, when the science

dictates otherwise”. “Type II Medical Malpractice”, according to Hadler, is when

doctors or health professionals do their work very well, but in cases where the work

is simply not necessary (Hadler). The main problem that American society faces is

not the prescription drugs themselves, but their overabundance and application

where they are not required. No one is suggesting that prescription drugs should be

outright banned from public schools or denied to patients on a whim. Rather, each

individual case should be investigated and checked on to make sure things are

working smoothly. If a student or adult has trouble functioning in society without

some sort of medication, then by all means it should be provided to them. But there

must be some changes to the system that is currently in place, as it is clearly not

effective in the least.

 If prescription drug abuse is to decline, there needs to be an ideological shift

in American society from that of medication-dependence to taking the time to think

about every single medical decision. A first major step would be to decrease the

number of prescriptions that Americans currently use or have. Again, no one wants

to get rid of the medications altogether, simply to reduce their prevalence where

possible. This, however, could be quite difficult to accomplish. To move in the right

direction, patients and professionals should take the time to discuss each

prescription that they are considering. Rather than heading straight to the doctor’s

office whenever there’s a slight problem, patients should think things through.

Rather than reaching for the prescription pad, professionals should talk to their

patients about the risks and dangers involved with prescription medication and its

abuse. Another major component of this issue is public awareness and education.

Students, conveniently already in an educational setting, should be exposed to the

dangers of prescription medication in health class or school-wide seminars. Those

people who are out of school should at least have access to informational programs

or advertising of some sort that can give them idea of what to expect with

medication-sharing and drug abuse. To make sure that the next generation does

not continue the trend of prescription drug abuse, a lot of attention should be

placed on kids and teens specifically. Typical guidelines given to parents include

safeguarding drugs in the home, setting clear rules about sharing medications and

following directions, serving as a good role model for your children, concealing and

disposing of old medications, and asking friends to do the same (“Tips for

Preventing Rx Abuse”). Schools need to create some sort of organizational system

to make sure that the only medications in the building are those that are absolutely

necessary, possibly going as far as checking backpacks if there is a major problem.

 Stewart Wenner - 7

Pharmacists do have both a legal and personal responsibility to ensure that the

drugs they prescribe are not abused; they should have a strong knowledge of state

and federal laws regarding controlled substances, and should be able to recognize

when a situation is somehow not right, as in the case of altered prescriptions. In

general, American society needs more regulation on prescription drugs – reductions

in drug abuse will follow.

The medical technology that we have access to today is incredible. Every

year we hear of more and more advancements that will help us to live a little longer

or a little better. At some point, however, we are going to become oversaturated by

this technology; this is what we are seeing now as prescription drug abuse is on the

rise. A problem often thought to be contained to only adolescents, medication-

sharing and abuse takes place at all levels of society in every age group. From

students who use the medications to boost their concentration and escape from the

school-day to middle-aged women sharing painkillers to 80-year-olds who are

overprescribed and confused about their medications, this issue has completely

permeated American society. We have reached a point where prescription drug

abuse is no longer a minor issue that only affects a few people in the country. It is

now so ingrained in American culture that some people don’t even think of it as a

bad thing anymore – or realize that it is very dangerous and potentially quite

harmful to many people. There certainly are some regulations in place now, as

there should be, but the current system is not doing as much as it should be. Rather

than catching and stopping prescription drug abuse after it has already taken place,

we need to take action to prevent it from happening in the first place. This means

more pre-screening, more time considering whether a certain prescription is

necessary, and more checking up on patients to make sure they know the rules –
taking and using medications is about the farthest thing you could get from a game.

If we don’t take action now to curb the trend of prescription medication abuse, the

problem could soon be so rampant and destructive that there would be no way to

harness or control it. Thus, changes need to be made – and as soon as possible. Part

of the problem is our needless dependence on medication, but part of it is simply

our frame of mind. As soon as we see or feel a minor health problem, we tend to

leap to ridiculous conclusions about their seriousness, and are almost always

proven wrong. As a result, thousands of American are taking prescription

medications when all they need is a bit of rest, and many problems – most

significantly, drug abuse – rise from this issue. With a few slight lifestyle changes

that the majority of the population would not even notice, prescription drug abuse

can be just about eliminated altogether. In our “medicalized” society, sometimes we

need to step back and take a look at where we really are to see how bad the

situation is.
 Stewart Wenner - 8

Works Cited

Boyd, Carold J. “Adolescents’ motivations to abuse prescription medications.”

Pediatrics. Dec. 2006.

Health & Wellness Resource Center. Jan. 2008.

<http://www.gale.cengage.com/>.

Hadler, Norton M. Worried Sick. Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina

Press, 2008.

Jinks, MJ. “A profile of alcohol and prescription drug abuse.” The Annals of
Pharmacotheraphy. 971-975.

1990. Jan. 2008.

<http://www.theannals.com/cgi/content/abstract/24/10/971>.

Kirn, Timothy F. “Prescription medication abuse by teens soars.” Family Practice

News. 1 Oct. 2006.

International Medical News Group. Health & Wellness Resource Center. Gale.
30 Dec. 2008.

<http://www.gale.cengage.com/>.

Murphy, Terrence E. “Assessing Multiple Medication Use With Probabilities of

Benefits and Harms.”

Journal of Aging and Health. 14 July 2008. 14 Dec. 2008.

<http://jah.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/20/6/694>.

Pektas, Aubrey. “Prescription medication abuse on the rise with students.” U-Wire.
Nov 22 2008. Health

& Wellness Resource Center. Dec. 2008. <http://media.www.gcsunade.com>.

Petersen, Emily E. “Prescription Medication Borrowing and Sharing among Women

of Reproductive

Age.” Journal of Women’s Health. Volume 17, Number 7, 2008. Dec. 2008.

<http://www.liebertonline.com.libezproxy2.syr.edu/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/jwh.2
007.0769?cook

eSet=1>.

“Tips for Preventing Rx Abuse.” The Anti-Drug. 2008. Jan. 2008.

 <http://www.theantidrug.com/pdfs/rxdrugs_otc.pdf>.

Works Consulted

“A Pharmacist’s Guide to Prescription Fraud.” US Department of Justice. Office of

Diversion Control. Feb.

2000. Dec. 2008.

<http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubs/brochures/pharmguide.htm>.

White, Barbara P. “Stimulant medication use, misuse, and abuse in an

undergraduate and graduate

student sample.” Journal of American College Health. April 2006. Heldref

Publications. Health &

Wellness Resource Center. Gale. 30 Dec. 2008.

<http://www.gale.cengage.com/>.
A “Medicalized” America:
How Prescription Drug Abuse is
Corrupting the Nation

Stewart Wenner
WRT 105
Argument Essay
1/15/08