Author: Jason Schwartz

I have been an addiction professional and social worker since 1994. I started blogging in 2005 as the Clinical Director at Dawn Farm. I currently serve as the Director of Social Work and Spiritual Care for a healthcare system. I've also served as the Director of Behavioral Health at another hospital. I'm also a lecturer at Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work. Views expressed here are my own. Keep in mind that the field, the contexts in which the field operates, and my views have changed over time.

Overprescription of opioids is bad medicine

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 4 Comments

Keith Humphreys points out that the problem with the explosion of prescriptions for opioids isn't just addiction and overdose. They are often just not good medicine. Opioids typically have a miraculous effect on acute pain, but this does not necessarily translate to chronic pain relief, particularly as tolerance sets in over time. Even more disturbing, … Continue reading Overprescription of opioids is bad medicine

Indescribable horror turned into advocacy

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 4 Comments

Bill White appears to have started blogging! His most recent post touches upon an issue that is close to my heart. People in recovery and their family members are leading what is rapidly becoming an international recovery advocacy movement, but there are faces and voices notably absent from the frontlines of this movement:  the families … Continue reading Indescribable horror turned into advocacy

Women Dying of Opioid Overdose at Unprecedented Rates

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 3 Comments

The skyrocketing opiate over dose rate is getting some attention in a new CDC report: The number of women dying from overdoses of opioid painkillers increased 5-fold between 1999 and 2010, according to new data released today by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The problem of prescription opioid drug overdoses in … Continue reading Women Dying of Opioid Overdose at Unprecedented Rates

Less is more – Antipsychotics and Recovery from First-Episode Psychosis

~ Jason Schwartz

A very interesting finding with profound implications for addicts who experience a psychotic episode. (Particularly since it's so difficult to tease out whether it was substance -induced.) Importance  Short-term outcome studies of antipsychotic dose-reduction/discontinuation strategies in patients with remitted first-episode psychosis (FEP) showed higher relapse rates but no other disadvantages compared with maintenance treatment; however, long-term effects … Continue reading Less is more – Antipsychotics and Recovery from First-Episode Psychosis

What policy would minimize total damage?

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 4 Comments

Mark Kleiman responds to a WSJ column expressing concern about increases in marijuana use leading to increases in schizophrenia. Kleiman responds to the specific concerns and then steps back to frame the larger policy decisions. The author of the WSJ piece solemnly announces, “The claim that marijuana is medically harmless is false.” No sh*t, Sherlock! … Continue reading What policy would minimize total damage?

Sentences to ponder

~ Jason Schwartz

...interestingly, the arguments that really move public opinion here are those that are almost conservative in nature: legalization saves money; legalization can forestall the need for property or income taxes (on middle Americans, implicitly); legalization frees up police resources for violent criminals. --Sean Trende