Campus Health says prescriptions routine

Katy Hartley, a pre-business sophomore, went to Campus Health Service last year with a sore throat.

Hartley expected the Campus Health doctor to give her a strep throat test and possibly antibiotics.

Instead, she was sent home with a bottle of Vicodin, a strong opiate painkiller.

"I was really surprised; I totally expected antibiotics, and all I got was Vicodin," said Hartley, who had an allergic reaction to the drugs. "It seems really weird to me; I don't know why they are treating sore throats by prescribing these medications."

Hartley said several other students she knows have also been prescribed Vicodin for sore throats at Campus Health, and they are concerned because of a recent rise in prescription drug abuse.

"I decided to wait it out, but things like this really make me think twice about going to Campus Health," she said.

According to the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the second-most popular category of drug use, after marijuana, is the nonmedical use of prescription drugs likeVicodin and OxyContin.

One UA student who wanted to remain anonymous said she has developed a dependency on prescription drugs, specifically OxyContin. While Campus Health did not cause her addiction, she said Campus Health prescribed drugs to her prior to her addiction.

The 20-year-old attends a methadone clinic daily to fight her addiction.

In the clinic, the student is given drugs to help fight withdrawal symptoms as a result of being addicted to opiates.

Around 1.9 million people in the United States age 12 or older have used OxyContin nonmedically at least once in their lives, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Employees at Campus Health said it is routine to prescribe Vicodin and other opiate painkillers for sore throats, as well as for a range of other ailments, including back pain.

"Pain medications are used for a wide variety of things," said Debra Cox-Howard, a mental health clinician at Campus Health.

The student addicted to OxyContin said many people do not realize how easy it is to get addicted to opiate pain medication.

"People think it's OK to use these drugs recreationally because doctors prescribe them, and they're not off the street. Then they get addicted," she said.

But Cox-Howard said very few UA students report having a dependency on prescription pain medication.

"I see about 40 to 50 students a week (for counseling), and only about two students in an academic year mention having a problem with prescription medications," she said.

She has never referred a student to a methadone clinic.

Campus Health officials could not confirm how many painkillers like Vicodin and OxyContin were prescribed to students.

But the student addicted to OxyContin said she thinks more people are abusing these medications, and they might not be reporting it.

"Doctors don't realize how many kids are actually abusing these drugs. Even in my classes, people talk about taking opiates and other prescription drugs recreationally," she said.

Lynn Reyes, an alcohol and other drug specialist at Campus Health, and Cox-Howard said the actual numbers refute this anecdotal information.

"Students have a tendency to assume and exaggerate with these types of things," Cox-Howard said.

The Campus Health and Wellness Survey from 2003 reported that 5 percent of UA students had used opiates within the past 30 days.

But Reyes said it is important to note this does not mean these students were abusing the medications.

"We can't assume that they are using illegally," she said.

Although the problem of prescription drug abuse may not be at an epidemic level at the UA, it is a national problem. In the United States, an estimated 6.2 million people misuse prescription drugs.

Cox-Howard acknowledged that some students do misuse the drugs that doctors prescribe them.

"Not everybody is going to use a prescription responsibly," she said.

Using alcohol with the prescription medication, taking improper doses and crushing the pills to snort them are some of the ways students misuse their prescriptions. Reyes and other health prevention specialists at Campus Health try to prevent students from abusing these medications by talking to Residence Life about drug addiction and distributing newsletters, although their main focus is on alcohol.

"Both Debra and I serve as a resource for people who are concerned about a student who might have an addiction," Reyes said.

Cox-Howard and Reyes encouraged anyone who is concerned about a friend's drug use to contact Campus Health.