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Assignment Two
Background Information/Introduction

House has been a phenomenon since premiering in 2004. With ratings received from the
top TV critics with an 8.8 from IMDb, and a 9.2 from TV.com, this show is a hit. Over is eight
year duration this show has attracted a very broad audience from people who are involved in the
medical field to those who just enjoy a good TV show. One of the questions that many people
have when watching House is how does the Main Character House who is arrogant, pessimistic,
and has many problems in his personal life, become a genius diagnostician. One thing that really
intrigued me about House, is his addiction to prescription pain killers. In one episode that I
observed, it is seen that when going a couple of hours without taking his prescribed pain
medications, House becomes very angry, and does not make good decisions when coming to his
patients. Observing his addiction to pain killers, and how it affects his daily life has made me
look into how addiction to not only prescription drugs, but also hardcore affects those in society
today.
The United States longest, unwinnable war is the war on drugs due to the fact that illicit
drug use in the United States has been increasing. In 2013, an estimated 24.6 million Americans
aged 12 or older (9.4 percent of the population) had used an illicit drug in the past month. Most
people used drugs for the first time when they were teenagers, and Drug use is highest among
people in their late teens and twenties, but surveys show that Drug use is increasing among
people in their fifties and early sixties. (NIH) Also, most teens die from prescription drugs than

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heroin/cocaine combined, and 60% of teens who abuse prescription drugs get them free from
friends and relatives. The United States represents 5% of the worlds population but yet
represents 75% of prescription drugs taken. (DoSomething) These statistics are shocking right?
So, my focus and purpose for writing this paper will be addressing drug addiction in the United
States, through looking at the process the on the brain and the body, and treatments available for
those who are going through addiction.

Literature Review

People who often see those who are addicted to drugs as having no will power, or as
weak, but many people do not know nor understand the affects that drugs have on the brain, and
the body. Addiction to narcotic drugs is one of the most serious but least understood medical and
social problems of our time due to the fact that there are many physical, psychological, and social
aspects of addiction. Most drugs release a drug known as dopamine which is a neurotransmitter
that causes intense pleasure in parts of the brain. It links brain areas that control and regulate
emotions, and because of this people become psychologically and physically dependent on drugs
very quickly. (Nature Drugs) Systems that drive judgement, planning, and organization, are
overruled by drugs and often times seek those who are addicted to seek that pleasure of getting
high. Addictions recruits memory systems, motivational systems and continues to stimulate the
drive to use. (Anatomy)
Many of those who are addicted to drugs are those who attended the work place every
day. The use of Opioids is very common in the work force. Patrick Krill, who directs a treatment

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program at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation that focuses on lawyers and judges stated that
The more professional stature you have, the less likely you are going to be forced into recovery,
and the longer your addiction is likely to go unchecked.(Opioid) In response to this epidemic
that has swept the country the CDC has released guidelines on prescribing opioid painkillers. The
advice is aimed at primary care physicians, who prescribed nearly half of the opioid painkillers
consumed in the U.S. (CDC) Although that is one step towards treatment there are many other
obstacles that people face when seeking treatment.
One of the main reasons that people do not seek treatment is money. It cost thousands of
dollars to go and seek help, and most people who are facing addiction do not have that money.
But there have been bills passed such as the Affordable Care Act and other federal laws to help
give people insurance to help those who are seeking to recover from addiction pay for those
services. (Medicaid may soon) But, what good is having insurance when we do not have enough
counselors to help those who are in need. Not only do we not have enough counselors to help,
but on top of that there are many counselors who have left the job for multiple reasons such as
low pay, as well as how hard the job can be when seeing the pain of those who are recovering.
(Shortage of Addiction)
Even if you are able to overcome those obstacles, there are now ways that those who are
trying to overcome their addiction can be punished for doing so. Recently the federal government
proposed update guidelines that govern the release of patient records about treatment for alcohol
and drug abuse. These guidelines put the privacy for those who are being treated for addiction at
risk, and may have devastating effects on their work and family lives. In some cases, it may have
legal repercussions, including arrest, prosecution and jail. (Feds Plan) Then there are people who

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feel that the way we as a country handle those who are going through addiction is completely
wrong, and we as a society are influenced by shows such as Intervention and tell those who are
addicted the we will cut them off or distance ourselves from them. But that is the complete
opposite of what we should be doing. Studies have shown that those going through addiction are
much more successful when shown support and love from family members, and know that they
have their support system to depend on rather than the drugs that they are taking. (Ted Global
London)

Entering the Conversation

When observing all of this information, there is one gap that comes to my attention. As shown in
my observations, House who is a medical personnel who is addicted to prescription drugs. When
reading all of these articles, I feel that they are biased in a sort of way. The sources do not talk
about those who work in the medical field that are addicted to drugs. There were not any articles
in the databases that talked about this. In my opinion people who work in the medical field can
have an easier access to prescription drugs due to the fact that they know the effects of each drug,
how it will affect their body, and since they are medical personnel they have the ability to
prescribe it to themselves. One reason I believe not we do not hear about this as often is not one
hospital wants to have a reputation of having a doctor who is addicted to drugs, and often times
doctors could lose their credibility, and their license. So to do a new approach to this topic I

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would do a Ted Talk on the concept of Doctors on drugs, and what we can do to spread
awareness.
In my Ted talk, I would open by giving all of the information presented in my literature review,
and then I would point out what I stated previously about medical personnel not being mentioned
in the sources. I have never turned on the news or heard a story of someone in the medical field
being addicted to drugs. Some things I would mention would be that the number of drug and
alcohol addicted physicians and nurses is estimated at 1014% which proves my point that doctors
struggle at addiction at a similar or even higher rate than the general population. And also in the
medical world, three specialist account for a substantially higher proportion than other specialties
which include anesthesiologist, E.R specialist, and psychiatrist. (NIH) In addition I would talk
about how easy it is for doctors to turn to addiction due to the fact that they are too human, and
go through situations such as trauma, anxiety, depression, and on top of that they have to go
through pressures that come with the medical profession such as educational demands, long work
days, taking care of patients, stress, and once again that temptation of having that availability of
addictive substances. I would also talk about how we enjoy shows such as House and Nurse
Jackie where there are doctors who are addicted to shows, and act like these shows are only
made up from imagination when in reality, the concept of medical personnel being addiction is
reality and it constantly happening. Then I would lead into ways as to how we can bring
awareness.
One way I believe we would help prevent drug addiction is by starting with those who are
aspiring to be in the medical field. So one way that we could do that is by teaching those who are
on a prehealth track in college, or those who are in medical school about different ways to cope

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with the hardships of medical personnel. Whether that be going to starting a support group, or
doing physical activity. I would also make sure to educate them on different resources to get help
such as addiction centers specifically for doctors, as well as different hotlines or clinics to attend
that are designated towards doctors. I would then make sure to end my Ted talk by talking about
signs that doctors are impaired such as slurring words, stumbling, being irritable or easily
angered or lacking coordination. (Health.Haravard) And I would encourage the audience to
spread the information that they have learned, and also promote my Ted Talk on social media to
help spread awareness.

Conclusion/So What?
When doing my observations in Assignment One and looking at how House acted when he did
not take his prescribed medication motivated me to look in to drug addiction. When doing
research on drug addiction I instantly became intrigued and learned new and useful information.
I decided to look into what drugs do to the brain and the body, what treatments are available for
those who are going through addiction, and what hardships they have to face. When doing this I
found that when addicted to drugs, it affects the brain and body by impairing vital areas in the
brain in the frontal lobe which control motor skills and critical thinking. I also found that
treatment is not as available as many think. Not only is there a shortage of counselors, but also
although the government has tried to expand insurance coverage, the cost is still very high for
rehab clinics making those who are less fortunate unable to get the help needed to recover. I also
found that there was a very big gap when coming to drug addiction due to the fact that most

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information only covered the general public, when shown in my observation medical personnel
are very prone to drug addiction as well if not more. My solution to this was to do a Ted Talk that
would address this issue as well as show a plan that would help those in the medical field as well
as spread awareness on this topic. I have come to the conclusion when coming up with solutions
with drug use increasing in the United States that we as a country really need to evaluate the
resources and personnel that we have in place for those are going through addiction. I believe
that we should make sure that there are enough clinics and counselors to help people help those
going through rehab, and also make sure that insurance covers a reasonable amount to help those
who are less fortunate. At the same time, we have to also do prevention programs whether it be
in schools, advertisements on t.v, or education and awareness programs targeted towards career
fields that have a higher risk of addiction. I also believe that we should not treated those who are
going through addiction as less of a human being, and encourage them to get help and show them
love and support being that studies have shown that it increases the completion of the
rehabilitation process and decreases the chance of relapse. When looking into areas for potential
research I would look into politics for the different laws and regulations when dealing with drugs
and addiction how we can improve those laws to decrease the addiction rate.

Works Cited

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1. "Anatomy Of Addiction: How Heroin And Opioids Hijack The Brain." NPR.
NPR, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.

2. Does Early Onset of Nonmedical Use of Prescription Drugs Predict Subsequent

Prescription Drug Abuse and Dependence? Results from a National Study." McCabe.
N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016

3. "Drug Addiction: Physiological, Psychological, and Sociological Aspects." APA

PsycNET. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.

4. "Everything You Think You Know about Addiction Is Wrong." Johann Hari:.
N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.
5. Nature.com. Nature Publishing Group, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.
6. "Obama Begins Drug Addiction Prevention Conversation In West Virginia."
NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.
7. "To Prevent Addiction In Adults, Help Teens Learn How To Cope." NPR. NPR,
n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.
8. "Tragedy Moves A Community To Combat Drug Addiction." NPR. NPR, n.d.
Web. 13 Mar. 2016.

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9. "Treating Addiction As A Chronic Disease." NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 13 Mar.
2016.
10. "What Doctors Don't Know about the Drugs They Prescribe." Ben Goldacre:.
N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2016.