HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

pain contract at the docs makes me feel as tho I am being treated like I am out on parole...

Support Forums
>
Crohn's Disease
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
12
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 9/29/2010 7:06 PM (GMT 0)
Hi all,

After being with this PA family practice for about a year now they finally realized oh we havent been following protocol and having those on  controlled substanced on a pain contract.  I have had to use  pain contracts before but none like this one. 

My GI also feels as tho the 5mg oxycodone may no longer be effective enough for me so he will script me 10 mg of the same med telling me if it is severe pain I can take 1 of the 10s he is giving me and 1 of the 5 mg that the pa office is giving me..so

of course I think it is ok only to find that this contract will not allow that and if they find out about it they will drop me.  Oh and If I get alt pain meds for ANY reason whether it be in the hospital, for a med test etc I HAVE TO CALL THEN within 1 day to alert them.

Also it is Mandatory that they call me and I have random blood and urine drug screenings and if they find none of the meds they script in the urine they assume I am selling and will discharge me from the practice same goes  if they find other meds....

again I understand the need for these contracts but I felt belittled like they are treating me as an addict where on days I can get by with no pain meds or alternate means I do and I try those 1st before using the narcotic but some days I just cant

Posted 9/29/2010 7:10 PM (GMT 0)
My insurance recently started something similar. Its not as demanding as yours is, but still a pain in the butt. I have to show ID even for meds like Librax because it has a benzo type drug like Valium in it. Pain in the butt, but I guess its for a good reason because others have abused the system by doctor shopping for these meds.
Posted 9/29/2010 7:18 PM (GMT 0)
When I see my GI on the 19th I am going to speak to him about being the doc that scripts them out to me since he is the one monitoring the disease or see if maybe there is a pain clinic in the town I live in that can help I do find that even taking the 15mg doesnt help I have tears streaming down my face in such pain moving my heating pad from room to room etc. This morning I was having abdominal pain like I had to have a BM so of course I did ...and I still say there shouldnt be that much poop in someone my size who in addition is missing a good chunk of colon and part of my ilium...no wonder I go to bed needing larger pants then in the am they are loose...anyway my old GI wanted me to try for a diff method which i cannot go into due to rules here but for the moment this is mostly working I just fear my tolerance levels which is much of the reason my old GI was thinking along those lines
Posted 9/29/2010 7:22 PM (GMT 0)
I dont understand :S

Drangonfly are you a addict or are you on record for selling drugs ?

I dont know why they are treating you like a criminal not a sick person.
Posted 9/29/2010 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
Isergodur here in the US we have had so many people who doctor shop for these meds, that it makes it hard for those of us who REALLY need them to get them sometimes.

Dragonfly if anything I think it might be a good idea to just ask the GI for a referral to a pain mgmt clinic. GI's are notorius for not prescribing pain meds, plus I think they could better control your pain issues at a pain mgmt clinic. Good luck!
Posted 9/29/2010 8:08 PM (GMT 0)

Nanners said...
Isergodur here in the US we have had so many people who doctor shop for these meds, that it makes it hard for those of us who REALLY need them to get them sometimes.

Dragonfly if anything I think it might be a good idea to just ask the GI for a referral to a pain mgmt clinic. GI's are notorius for not prescribing pain meds, plus I think they could better control your pain issues at a pain mgmt clinic. Good luck!

Thats really sad :(

I know we have some problems here to but with only 320 thousand people it must be easier to manage with it.
Posted 9/29/2010 9:14 PM (GMT 0)
Ugh Dragonfly I feel your pain about painmeds! Even now that I have a GI who prescribes them to me I still automatically feel guilty or like I'm doing something wrong for taking them because thats how doctors made me feel for years. I tried my primary, because he gave them to me once (well his partner, but then they separated), my old GI would never ever prescribe them, and I once tried a pain management specialist. My mom even went with me once to my primary since I feel doctors tend to be agest since statistics show women in their 20s are the biggest abusers.

Its so frustrating I cant believe they are making you do all of that! I understand some rules and lines have to be set because I unfortunately have known a person or two who abused but it sucks for people who only take them as needed and how they can really change your quality of life but docs are so scared to prescribe them.

I cant believe the blood/urine tests. I mean wouldnt it be a GOOD thing if it wasn't in your urine/blood and shows that perhaps you are in less pain? I mean I have a script they says I can take 4 pills a day and I usually take (if any lately, just cause I'm always too nauseous) a pill and a half at the most.

Ugh, just keep on fighting for yourself and your right to be in less pain! Good luck!
Posted 9/29/2010 10:15 PM (GMT 0)
No I am nor have I ever been adicted to drugs or sell anything. I now live in a high Meth area so maybe thats why but even still meth has nothing to do with CD pain or treatment of the pain...I think they are taking the contract a little TOO far.
Posted 9/29/2010 10:28 PM (GMT 0)

dragonfly137927 said...
No I am nor have I ever been adicted to drugs or sell anything. I now live in a high Meth area so maybe thats why but even still meth has nothing to do with CD pain or treatment of the pain...I think they are taking the contract a little TOO far.

I think so too :S
Sorry about the questions I just had a hard time why a normal person was treated like this :(
Posted 9/29/2010 11:10 PM (GMT 0)
I was 1st diagnosed when I was 8 back in 87 with this DD and my old GI prior to the one I saw post op since my 1st one even with med records proving I was flaring ...but thats another story use to script out vicodin for the joint pains I would have for the CD...I found a better option when I moved to Cali the lidodeerm patches they worked better lasted longer no real side effects etc...now the HUmira has been the best thing ever for them and my most recent GI in RI (while I was still there) started me on that since Remi stopped working (and I had more side effects reactions etc to it). Since my surgeries I have had more pain than before often wonder if I should think about an ileostomay again but I was so sick and dehydrated all the time with it...and the CD did move to my colon after my resection it has since subsided there but my scope a cpl weeks ago proves I still have mild to moderate CD so it isnt like I am just asking for pills I have PROOF that I am not in remission etc...
Posted 9/29/2010 11:13 PM (GMT 0)
My goodness, I've never heard of such a thing. Well I think that's absurd! Drug problem in the area or not.
I think this sort of thing that would drive us all to drink!!!!!!!
Posted 9/30/2010 12:59 AM (GMT 0)
lol nope cant do that it was on the list....and again you drink while you have a script 4 the meds and they find out bye bye having a doc there
Posted 9/30/2010 1:11 AM (GMT 0)
Geez and I thought the docs were treating me bad but I feel like I went through nothing compared to all the crap youre going through! Have you tried other docs?
Posted 9/30/2010 1:27 AM (GMT 0)
I am going to have too this is BS...Going to see if my GI has any suggestions also need to look at the Medicare provider list...some are on there tho that no longer take new patients so the search continues...this is the place my bf wanted to speak to the admins due to the rudeness he and I got there well that got him kicked out of being seen there ...he switched to there when I started there so all of us could go to the same place now his old place wont take him back cuz they are full since they didnt take medicare Iw as unablet o even try to get in there.
Hopefully I will ahve my copy of the contract I was made to sign by the time I go to my GI the 19th but with this office who my PA's assistant swears up and down H1N1 was a govt conspiracy and she felt the need to share these thoughts to all patients...yeah the list goes on and on ...have to make appts for labwork etc its nuts there
Posted 9/30/2010 1:36 AM (GMT 0)
You have to do something honey. You're being treated like someone on probation. This is not right!!!!!
Posted 9/30/2010 4:02 AM (GMT 0)
I had to do a very similar contract with my primary care doc and honestly it is not that big of a deal. The reason that most of the doctors are doing this is because they are under heavy pressure from the media and society due to the huge rise in overdose deaths. Just like a previous poster mentioned about doctor shopping, this is really just a safey legal net for them just in case you either overdose, become addicted, or start selling your pills. I have only been tested 1 time in the year that I signed my contract and that was just a formality. I have been to the E.R. once since I signed my contract and informed them before right when I got there and they got a hold of my doctor. This was great because instead of some E.R. doctor that knows little about me or crohn's disease, my primary care was taking care of me and monitoring me from his home.It also helped with the whole I am not a drug seeker conversation when I got to the E.R.
I felt very similar to you when I first had to sign it. I actually approached my doc and asked if he no longer trusted me and he explained that I was not the problem but there were many patients that are. He also works well with my G.I. and if my G.I. wants to prescribe me a medication that is in question he calls my other doc to let him know. This is a huge benefit because it helps establish better communication between the 2 docs and a better combined medical plan for me.
Posted 9/30/2010 11:03 AM (GMT 0)
dragonfly, ill bet the drs group got caught by the feds over prescribing and are on some sort of probation.. i had a "contract" that was through the government at the VA. it did not restrict any amount of pain meds but only that i would fill all prescriptions through them so as to monitor how much i was being given. they never batted an eye at increases by the drs etc.. they just wanted to know if we are getting multiples from more drs. which seems reasonable.
Posted 9/30/2010 1:13 PM (GMT 0)
I have a question, I'm on rem and vicodin, the vicodin is 2-3 refills per month 30 ea. 500mg which is one of the lower doses, are those pain contracts for oxy's or stronger pain med's only or are they for vicodins as well, I also take serax, similar to valium, am I looking at contract for that combo? I don't care either way, but i have never herard of this, but I can certainly understand the reasoning behind it. I know oxy's go for $80 per pill on the black market in so. cal. I heard drug addicts use oxy's and mix with zanex, and shoot up that combo.

Posted 9/30/2010 5:36 PM (GMT 0)
I've gotten to the point where I'm in favor of legalizing the street drugs. At least we get the tax revenues and either enough druggies overdose and cease to be a problem or people smarten up and quit using the stuff. And those that need adequate pain managment can get the scripts needed and hopefully relief w/o being made to feel like criminals.
Posted 9/30/2010 6:38 PM (GMT 0)
the contract is for any and all controlled scripts artist...not all offices make you do it tho...having a contract itself doesnt bother me but some of the things on it are a bit extreme...They give me 120count 5 mg pills per month I do not get it filled every month I get it every 45-60 days on average sometimes longer. script reads 1-2 ever 6 hrs for pain
Posted 9/30/2010 6:54 PM (GMT 0)
wow, I have never heard anything like this before! I have had drs I don't know treat me like an addict before, but then my regular drs set them straight. thats it though, never heard of what your ins companies are putting you guys through.
Posted 9/30/2010 7:06 PM (GMT 0)
Dragonfly,don't take the whole contract personal as a way of them calling you an addict. There is no way that your doctor would think you are an addict if he or she is the one prescribing you the pills. They are just covering up their own behinds against potential lawsuits if someone slips through the cracks. Their own insurance may be making them do it also. I know that in the state I live in, the lawmakers are trying to make these contracts a law because of those that abuse the system. I don't know how many times I have gone to the E.R. and had to prove that I really was in pain because of all the drug seekers that show up and tell the E.R. doc that they have abdominal pain just to get pain meds.
As far as the number of pills you receive or dosage, that should probably not be affected by the contract because your doc is the one prescribing them to you. Realize that they are probably doing this for every patient receiving pain medication or narcotics at their office and not just you. Honestly, nothing has really changed except that it is mandatory that I see him every 60 days which was not a big deal since I already go in every 30. I like that it makes it so that the doctors have to keep track of you and not just write you a presciption and say," see ya". The language that is in the contract was probably written up by a medical attorney that was covering all of their bases. You can always speak to your doctor about your concerns with your other doctors prescibing meds to you and see if something can't be worked out. At first my G.I. had to call to let them know what he was prescibing(at my request), now my P.C. just said to let my G.I. prescibe whatever he thought I needed narcotic or non narcotic.
Posted 9/30/2010 7:52 PM (GMT 0)
Same contract here with a pain doctor.

My biggest problem is; I like to carry my meds around for that day in a little pill caddy, that way I know what I have taken, what I still need to take, I don't have to think about it, it's nice. But this creates a problem for police, and you may think, so what, how is that my business?

I got pulled over ONCE, without my bottles on me, and that was all it took. I was finally let go with a strict warning, and I am pretty sure he was serious, If I catch you out here again without the bottles, I will take you to jail....

I keep a printout of these meds in my car, and also keep the original bottles with one or two pills in each bottle to easily identify them in a large ziplock bag.

Plus the bottle has a decription of the pill, size, color, shape, and so does the printout.

When I get pulled over now, or hit a roadblock, the very first words out of my mouth are "please check my glovebox for prescription information"; And from there things just go smoothly.
Posted 9/30/2010 8:07 PM (GMT 0)
I keep a bottle of them in my purse if I go I usually keep old bottles of them (last 1 or 2) so I can just take 1 or 2 doses with me if I will be out for the day label accurate etc.
Posted 9/30/2010 8:34 PM (GMT 0)
I ask the pharmacy whenever I get my refills to please print another label and put it on a small bottle so that I can carry them in my purse.  Works great that way.

✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
12