Prescription drug abuse has continued to grow during the past decade, but agencies and community members hope that a multi-faceted approach can cripple the complex problem in the near future.

John Shelton, Surry County Emergency Services director, said that at this point, “It’s so far ahead of us, of everyone.”

But by taking precautions on all fronts and working together, agencies hope that they can catch up.

“It’s a check and balance system,” said Mount Airy Chief of Police Dale Watson.

Prescribing with care

At the first level are health-care providers, who prescribe and provide the medications.

“I’m not aware of any doctors misusing their ability to prescribe,” said Dr. Will Ballard with Jonesville Family Medical Center. “But certainly you have to be careful.”

He explained a difficulty doctors face, “When a patient comes in and tells you they’re hurting, it’s hard to tell if they really are.”

Practitioners have to be especially careful with patients they’ve never seen before. Dr. Paul Gulley with Yadkin Valley Adult Medicine said, “Most of the time you’re seeing patients you know. You can be fooled, but you know them and see them in the community ... There’s another level of concern if they’re coming into your office for the first time.”

One way Ballard thinks this can be combated is for there to be more training for doctors on how to tell if someone is really in pain or trying to trick them. He said Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital has held staff meetings on that very topic.

When people complain of chronic pain, they are often sent to pain clinics where they will be given ongoing treatment to keep the pain in check. One such clinic is in Elkin. Gulley said he has sent some patients to the clinic, and they have very strict rules, such as conducting drug screenings to make sure patients don’t have any other drugs or pain killers in their systems.

Keeping better records

In the past, most doctors and pharmacists had no way of knowing how many prescriptions a person was taking. A patient could possibly be getting prescriptions from a variety of different doctors. A new state database could help change that, though.

When pharmacists fill controlled-substance prescriptions, they are required to send a report to the state. This information is included in the N.C. Controlled Substances Reporting System, which physicians have access to if they apply to get a password.

“I believe this new Web site is a step in the right direction,” said John Cox, a pharmacist with Mount Airy Drug.

However, doctors are not required to look at the database before prescribing medications. Cox also said the database doesn’t include information on drugs that have been prescribed in other states. He would like to see a national database so it would be easier to catch people who are doctor shopping in different states.

Ballard said another positive step is that more providers are using electronic record systems, which will make it easier for doctors to keep up with patients and know what medications have been prescribed in the past.

Coping with limited law enforcement resources

When it comes to catching people who abuse the system, law enforcement has to cope with limited laws and resources. Sheriff Graham Atkinson said law enforcement faces challenges because there’s really not a system in North Carolina for law enforcement to track prescriptions that have been filled, and doctors have access to a database that they aren’t required to use.

“It makes it really hard to prosecute prescription drug cases,” he said.

Mark Van Sciver, a spokesperson for the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, said the state legislature recently passed legislation forming a task force to study prescription drug abuse. As part of this, he said they will consider allowing county sheriff’s and drug investigation units to obtain information from the controlled-substances database about suspects under investigation. At this time, the only law enforcement agency with access to the database is the State Bureau of Investigation.

One benefit for officers is that once they catch someone who has prescriptions illegally, it takes very few pills for the person to be charged with trafficking.

“It’s easy to get into really serious trouble with just a handful of pills,” said Atkinson. “Most all of them are felony charges.”

But as Chief Darryl Bottoms with the Pilot Mountain Police Department put it, “With one you catch, there’s 10 more doing the same thing.”

Another occasional problem in the county is forgery of prescriptions. Cox said he has seen it a couple of times at his pharmacy, but that it is hard to gather enough evidence to prove that it’s a forgery. Chief Shawn Myers with the Dobson Police Department said his office has worked with Kerr Drug in Dobson to arrest several people trying to pass forged prescriptions.

Handling with care

One way to combat the dilemma is to make sure people know how to handle their prescription drugs. Officers said many people don’t know that they are not supposed to give any of their medication to others, even family members. They also need to be careful with where they store their medications.

Atkinson said people should hide their prescriptions, even lock them up if they can. He said it’s also a good idea to keep a count on how many pills they have.

If there are kids in the home, Atkinson said parents need to be observant. He said, “I think knowing your kids is one thing. How curious are they about medications? What kind of questions do they ask?”

If someone fears their medication is being abused by a friend or loved one, they shouldn’t hesitate to step in, said Frankie Andrews, who lost two nephews to prescription drug overdoses. Diane Andrews, mother of the two boys who overdosed, said people shouldn’t try to hide or ignore the problem.

“This can happen to anybody,” said Diane. “Don’t be embarrassed. Don’t be ashamed of your child.”

And if their “friends” are giving them the pills, she said to let the loved one know that those people are not their friends if they are contributing to the addiction.

Law enforcement officials say that one way to prevent pills from being misused is to dispose of any leftover medications. The sheriff’s office and county police agencies are all willing to dispose of medications for people.

“The best thing you can do is call local law enforcement,” said Myers.

Pitching in

Many people are beginning to realize that they don’t have to be doctors or politicians or law enforcement officers to make a difference.

Andrews is trying to start a college scholarship in honor of his nephews which he hopes will raise awareness. He wants the winning participant to write a report on drugs and present it to his or her class.

Holly Vogler and Lauren Creed, recent graduates of East Surry High School, decided to do a project on prescription drugs for their senior project. They created a temporary drop-off program for prescription drugs at the Pilot Mountain Police Department.

People also can help by volunteering for Surry Cares, a subcommittee of Project Connect the Dots that is looking at prescription drug abuse in the area. The group needs people to volunteer to share their stories and participate in public service announcements. Jamie Edwards, evaluator for Project Connect the Dots, said people can share stories anonymously. If people are interested in participating, they should call him at 443-0897.

People also can refer those struggling with addiction to the crisis line provided by Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare. Licensed clinical addiction specialists are available 24 hours a day. People who call can be screened by Crossroads to determine their level of addiction and what services are available to help them. The crisis line is 1-888-235-HOPE (4673).

There are also recovery centers in the region. For more information about prescription drug abuse and services for people struggling with addiction, visit www.samhsa.gov, www.drugfreeamerica.org and www.nida.nih.gov.

Angela Allen with House of Recovery Faith and Hope in Mount Airy said, “We have success stories, but it takes someone giving them a structured environment.”

Working together

In the end, officials want to work together to find solutions to the problems. Atkinson said, “It’s going to be hard for us to do this ourselves.”

Chief Dale Watson with the Mount Airy Police Department said he is part of a group of emergency responders, law enforcement officials and doctors who meet to discuss prescription abuse.

“We’re trying to do a multi-disciplinary approach,” said Watson.

Atkinson believes a responsibility they all have is to educate the public. He said there has been a big emphasis nationally on educating people about illegal drugs, but the dangers of legal drugs have been largely overlooked.

“Change not just the drugs, but the social attitude,” Atkinson said.

Contact Meghann Evans at mevans@mtairynews.com or 719-1952.