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Fla. governor's prescription drug plan hurts W.Va.

West Virginia officials say they're disappointed that Florida's governor wants to kill a planned prescription drug monitoring program in the Sunshine State, which is a destination for people who deal pills.

Kentucky's Bell County devastated by prescription drug deaths

Bell County in southeastern Kentucky currently has the eighth worst prescription drug death rate in the nation. Victims are citizens of every economic level, and the effects are hurting innocent people.

This story is part of a series that examines prescription drug abuse in Kentucky.

Rx for cold meds could reduce meth labs, expert says

Requiring a prescription for certain cold medicines could dramatically reduce methamphetamine production in West Virginia, a national substance-abuse expert told state lawmakers.

Funds to fight a drug epidemic cut even as abuse of medicines kills record number of Kentuckians

As drug-related deaths continue to rise, state funding for patient outreach is on the decline. This story is part of a series that examines prescription drug abuse in Kentucky.

'No magic pill' for addiction

Prescription drug abuse is growing nationwide, but West Virginia was one of the first places hit by the problem. When I picked this topic, I didn't realize how complex it was. The drugs are widely available. Doctors are struggling to treat pain with effective medications without supplying drug abusers. And prescription drug crimes have proven difficult to prosecute.

This is the final installment in a four-part series examining prescription drug abuse in West Virginia.

Prescription drug abuse plagues small W. Va. town

Prescription drug abuse is growing nationwide, but West Virginia was one of the first places hit by the problem. When I picked this topic, I didn't realize how complex it was. The drugs are widely available. Doctors are struggling to treat pain with effective medications without supplying drug abusers. And prescription drug crimes have proven difficult to prosecute.

This is the third in a four-part series examining prescription drug abuse in West Virginia.

Doctors Behaving Badly: Maryland doctor dispensed painkillers like candy

When a patient has a pain problem, he can seek a doctor who has experience in treating pain through a variety of measures that don’t rely solely on addictive prescription drugs.

Or he can find a doctor who acts like a Pez dispenser.

Dr. Daniel M. Howell was a Pez dispenser.

Doctors Behaving Badly: Body count tripped up prolific prescriber of painkillers

The medical examiner called Dr. Bernard N. Bass with some bad news: one of his
patients had been found dead. Bass refused to sign the death certificate.

Q&A with Dr. John Dombrowski: Michael Jackson's bungled pain management may have killed him

Four days after Michael Jackson died of an unexpected heart attack on June 25, Dr. John Dombrowski,an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, posted a letter on his Web site, demanding better pain management for all patients and a recognition that pain care is an important specialty.

Sheridan Miyamoto

Sheridan Miyamoto is a registered nurse health coach at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis. Previously, she was a nurse-practitioner for the UC Davis Medical Center's Child and Adolescent Abuse, Resource, Evaluation (CAARE) Diagnostic and Treatment Center. In that position, she coordinated and oversaw a program that provided physical exams for children and teens who have been sexually abused, physically abused or neglected, sometimes as a result of drug abuse in the home.

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