http://www.pharmaciststeve.com/?p=9945
A pharmacist at the Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Wisconsin said she was discouraged by higher-ups from performing drug tests on patients prescribed opiates, as is recommended by VA guidelines.
In a joint U.S. House and Senate committee hearing in Tomah on March 30, Noelle Johnson, a pharmacist who was fired from the facility and now is employed by VA as a pain management specialist in Des Moines, Iowa, said pharmacists were discouraged from testing patients for drug use for fear of what prescribing physicians might learn.
If the tests were negative, it might indicate that the patient was not taking the medication, raising questions as to whether they were “diverting” or selling their meds. If the tests were strongly positive, it could suggest overuse or abuse and VA could be held liable “when something unfortunate happened,” Johnson said she was told…
Marvin and Heather Simcakoski said Jason did not have the condition for which opiates are usually prescribed — chronic pain. But he was put on a powerful one — tramadol — just days before he died, they said during the hearing…
Since when did tramadol become a “powerful” opiate?
All Things Chronic 