Dentist Health & Wellness Committee - CDAD
of the Massachusetts Dental Society

Education & Resources

• Links
• Self Testing

Facts about addiction

1. Addiction is an illness, not a moral issue.

2. Addiction is more common among health care professionals than the general population, with a prevalence variously estimated 8-13%.

3. Addiction is a progressive illness. Professional impairment is frequently one of the later signs of alcohol and other drug dependence.

4. Addicted health care professionals cling to their "right" to practice despite significant impairment.

5. Addiction is marked by the use of psychological defense mechanisms, particularly denial (I don't have a problem), minimization (Everyone has a couple of drinks from time to time), rationalization (You would drink too if you had my patient load), and projection (It's this incompetent staff that drives me to drink).

6. Addictive disease has a strong genetic heritability component making some individuals vulnerable to alcohol and other drug use.

7. Addictive disease is fostered by stressful environments: long hours, excessive professional demands, the demands of patients and staff, the pressure associated with the health care environment in general; combined with the ready availability of psychoactive substances.

8. Addiction is a disease of deceit, loneliness and broken promises.

9. Addiction to alcohol is the primary problem for both health care professionals and the general population.

10. Addicted individuals account for 50% of the spending on alcohol despite the fact they represent only about 7% of the population.

11. Addiction to drugs is increased in health care professionals because of their access to drugs and ability to write prescriptions for psychoactive substances. In addition to self-treatment, reasons for using among health care professionals are recreation and performance enhancement.

12. Addiction is an equal opportunity illness. Intellect, education, wealth and power do not insulate an individual from addiction.

13. Addicted health care professionals benefit from intervention, which is particularly successful with credentialed individuals. Intervention is a life saving event.

14. Addiction treatment is very successful. Particularly with health care professionals, treatment works!

15. Addiction treatment is an ongoing process, not a one time event. "Getting better" goes through stages of change ultimately leading to shifts in behavior. [Click here for an overview of the Transtheoritical Model]

 

REFERENCES

*McClellan AT, Lewis DC, O'Brien CP, Kleber HD. Drug Dependence, a Chronic Medical Illness:

Implications for Treatment, Insurance and Outcome Evaluation. JAMA 2000;284:1689-95.

Friedman L, Fleming NF, Roberts DH, Hyman S. Source Book of Substance Abuse and Addiction. Baltimore:William & Wilkins;1996.p.73-85.

 

McAuliffe WE, et al. Psychoactive drug use among practicing physicians and medical students. N Engl J Med 1986;315:805-10.

Hughes PH, et al. Prevalence of Substance Abuse among US Physicians. JAMA 1992;267:2333-9.

Gallegos KV, Lubin BH, Bowers C, Blevins JW, et al. Relapse and recovery: five-to ten-year follow-up study of chemically dependent physicians-the Georgia experience. Md Med J 1992;41:315-9.

Morse RM, Martin MA, Swenson WM, Niven RG. Prognosis of Physicians Treated for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence. JAMA 1984;251:743-6.

Legal Notice: CDAD provides this site as a service to Massachusetts dentists and others. The materials in this site are provided "As Is" and without warranties of any kind, express or implied. CDAD is not liable for damages of any kind, whether special, indirect or consequential, arising from the use of information supplied herein. Nothing in this site is intended to constitute medical or legal advice. As a convenience, CDAD provides links to other sites, but does not control the contents of these other sites.