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.

High prevalence of opioid use by social security disability recipients

~ Jason Schwartz

A recent study finds that 43.7% of disability recipients are taking prescription opioids. Many are on very high doses.The researchers analyzed trends in use of prescription opioids (morphine-related drugs) among disabled Medicare beneficiaries under age 65 between 2007 and 2011. Nearly all under-65 Medicare beneficiaries are SSDI recipients; patients who go on SSDI are eligible … Continue reading High prevalence of opioid use by social security disability recipients

Recovery spaces and the adjacent possible

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 9 Comments

DJ Mac recently picked up on Bill White's post on the need to create and protect recovery spaces, given current trends toward legalization. He followed up by sharing another blogger's reaction to Bill's post. White asserts that “any policy discussions of marijuana legalization should include the voices of people in recovery and should include a serious discussion about … Continue reading Recovery spaces and the adjacent possible

What Happens When People Discontinue Taking Alcoholism Medications?

~ Jason Schwartz

Here's an interesting abstract from looking at relapse patterns for alcoholics taking medication for their alcoholism--they increased their drinking before discontinuing their medication. Aims We use intensive longitudinal data methods to illuminate processes affecting patients’ drinking in relation to the discontinuation of medications within an alcohol treatment study. Although previous work has focused on broad … Continue reading What Happens When People Discontinue Taking Alcoholism Medications?

we should never allow the sterile language of science to obscure [blank]

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 1 Comment

The NY Times published an op-ed on a controversy over evidence-based sentencing. Advocates of punishment profiling argue that it gives sentencing a scientific foundation, allowing better tailoring to crime-prevention goals. Many hope it can reduce incarceration by helping judges identify offenders who can safely be diverted from prison. While well intentioned, this approach is misguided. . . … Continue reading we should never allow the sterile language of science to obscure [blank]

The Emperor of All Maladies

~ Jason Schwartz

Throwback Sunday - I thought this old post on parallels between cancer, oncology, addiction, addiction treatment and recovery would be a good pairing with yesterday's post on professional attitudes toward difficult to treat illnesses. ================== I've been reading The Emperor of All Maladies and I've been very struck by the parallels between the is philosophical and practical … Continue reading The Emperor of All Maladies

They don’t expect to see [blank] patients doing well

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 1 Comment

This post quotes extensively from a Health Affairs article on how acute care training influences physician views of chronic disease patients. The author starts out with the stories of two patients and the stories physicians bring to the helping relationship. Martin is one of the few patients I remember who could make a three-hour treatment session … Continue reading They don’t expect to see [blank] patients doing well