Yikes! Hundreds of reports of suicides, psychotic reactions and other serious problems tied to the popular stop-smoking drug Chantix were left out of a crucial government safety review because Pfizer Inc., the drug’s manufacturer, submitted years of data through “improper channels.” Some 150 suicides — more than doubling those previously known — were among 589 … Continue reading Smoking-pill suicides overlooked
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.
The Epidemic of Mental Illness: Why?
CNN.com summarizes a NYT Book Review review of three recent books that challenge conventional wisdom about mental illness. All of the authors of the new books agree on two thought-provoking viewpoints: 1. Our understanding of categories of mental illness and their treatments has been influenced by drug companies, through both legal and illegal marketing. 2. … Continue reading The Epidemic of Mental Illness: Why?
Shaking the neurobiological monkey on the back
More spooky memory research with implications for trauma and addiction: The researchers injected a small protein - a peptide called ZIP - directly into an area of the addicted rats' basal forebrain called the nucleus accumbens, which controls pleasure and reward and which has been demonstrated to be connected to drug addiction. Afterward, the rats … Continue reading Shaking the neurobiological monkey on the back
Tab Dump
Parents of drug addicts need our help - A plea for drug policy depates to consider the needs of parents of addicts. For families carrying the burden of drug dependency, the public and political debate often centres on the rhetoric of how to send the right message to young people. It's an empty argument for those … Continue reading Tab Dump
Locked out?
Many of our clients have criminal records, so this is an important barrier to recovery: We ran an audit experiment that sent trained testers to apply for more than 1,000 entry-level jobs throughout New York City. The fake job applicants were dressed similarly, gave similar answers, and provided résumés with identical education and work experience. … Continue reading Locked out?
Turning on the lights
Reason, which consistently advocates for decriminalization, posted an op-ed on losing the drug war: Trying to solve the problem of addiction through incarceration is like trying to get rid of a cockroach infestation by turning on the lights. The temporary solution doesn’t address the underlying problem, which requires treatment. Sometimes locking a user up doesn’t … Continue reading Turning on the lights
et tu MI?
Cochrane (The same research group that found AA ineffective [rebuttals here and here], declared stimulants an effective treatment for cocaine addiction and provided oxygen for breathless headlines about the effectiveness of naltrexone for alcohol dependence [rebuttal here].) has done a meta-analysis of motivational interviewing (MI) and found it pretty underwhelming: We included 59 studies with a total of 13,342 participants. Compared … Continue reading et tu MI?
Methadone at The Fix
The Fix has an article arguing that methadone maintenance gets a bad rap and hints that critics should check their motives. (It's noteworthy that the writer has been pretty hard on drug-free treatment providers. Bill White has also voiced support for methadone but also strongly criticizing the poor quality and lack of recovery orientation.) There's … Continue reading Methadone at The Fix
a curious lack of skepticism
The American Scholar has a brutal take-down of the relationship between drug companies and medical journals. Flimsy plastic pens that scream the virtues of Vioxx and articles published in the pages of The New England Journal of Medicine would seem to mark the two poles of medical influence. Scarcely any doctor admits to being influenced by the … Continue reading a curious lack of skepticism
Asking the right questions
Addiction Today recently posted a summary of a 3 year old paper about problems with the focus of existing research on addiction treatment and proposals for new approaches. It makes some very important points. This article lists eight main faults: EXISTING RESEARCH IGNORES ‘outcome equivalence paradox’ EXISTING RESEARCH SACRIFICES RELATIONSHIP TO TECHNIQUE EXISTING RESEARCH IGNORES research … Continue reading Asking the right questions
Recovery Review 