Category Archives: Gastroenterology

ACCP Position Paper on the Funding of Hepatitis C Treatment

Posted on by
3

I recently published the official position paper of the American College of Correctional Physicians (ACCP) on the treatment of Hepatitis C in incarcerated patients (found here). However, some state legislatures (and others who which authorize funds for inmate medical care), have been reluctant to fully fund Hepatitis C treatment. Because of this, ACCP has formally approved the following Position Paper to encourage full funding of HepC treatment among incarcerated inmates.

Continue reading →

Constipation Plus Sample Guideline

Posted on by
Reply

Today’s post is a repost of an article I wrote previously about Constipation. Concurrent with this article, I have added a Sample Guideline on Constipation to the Guideline Section of JailMedicine (found here).

I have decided after many years of dealing with complaints of constipation both in the ER and in correctional facilities that bowel health is the last taboo subject.  We all received “The Talk” (about sex and reproductive health) when we were adolescents.  But nobody seems to talk about how to have a proper bowel movement.  It is a subject that inevitably causes giggling and uncomfortable laughter.  It is not spoken of in polite society.  As a result, many people do not understand how their bowels work.  I have found this to be a big problem in the jails I work in.  Inmates complain of constipation when they are not really constipated.  They are bowel-fixated when there is no reason for them to be.  Often, they need education more than they need laxatives. To this end, I want to discuss several essential factors relating to understanding and treating constipation that may help make your correctional medicine practice a little easier.

Continue reading →

Proton Pump Inhibitors: Dependency and Risk

Posted on by
6

I recently saw yet another patient come into the jail who was worried about one particular drug in a long list of medications he was taking—his Nexium. “I can’t miss a day of taking Nexium” he said, “It has to be refilled right away!” He was more concerned about Nexium than his blood pressure meds, his diabetes medications or his mental health medications. There was a lot of Nexium-anxiety on display.

And the funny thing is, this happens all the time! I have seen lots of jail patients wedded to their proton pump inhibitor, whether Nexium, Prilosec, Protonix or what ever. A prescription of a PPI often becomes a lifelong need.

I think it is important for all prescribers to understand why this is so. And why, despite this, it is not a good idea for most people to be on PPIs for long periods of time. Prescribers tend to under-estimate both the potential harms of long-term PPI use and the potential for patients to become dependent on them.

To this end, today’s Jail Medicine post presents two “Must Know” papers about Proton Pump Inhibitors. Continue reading →

Hepatitis C: Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Posted on by
18

As you probably know, Sovaldi (sofosbuvir) is an important new treatment for Hepatitis C infection that was released this last December and has been aggressively marketed by its maker, Gilead, ever since. The problem is that Gilead is charging an unheard of, jaw-dropping, $1,000.00 per pill for Sovaldi. This translates into a MINIMUM of $84,000.00 for Sovaldi alone for the simplest course of Hep C treatment. Add on the other necessary drugs and take into consideration more complicated cases, and a single course of therapy for Hepatitis C will cost between $100,000.00 and $250,000.00.

This price has placed prison systems in a no-win situation–and not just prisons, but also Medicaid, insurance companies, and HMOs. On one hand, Sovaldi is a good drug that, in fact, represents a significant advance in Hepatitis C treatment. Lots of Hepatitis C patients could potentially benefit from Sovaldi. On the other hand, no one can afford Sovaldi. Treating every potential Hep C patient using Sovaldi would bankrupt everyone. There is no good way out of this dilemma. 20120321 Continue reading →

Constipation Case: What Would You Do?

Posted on by
34

Constipated?

I am looking for some feedback here.  How would you manage this case?

A patient in her early 30s states that she has taken a Dulcolax tablet daily for over ten years.  She states she spent most of that time in correctional facilities but never had any problem receiving an order for daily Dulcolax.  She was out of jail for a time and continued to take OTC Dulcolax.  She reports no abdominal work ups.  Her only surgery was an appendectomy.  Her only other medical problem is episodic asthma.  Her physical exam is normal.

She now has arrived at one of my jails and wants me to continue her daily Dulcolax prescription.  Should I?  Here is my thought process: Continue reading →

Constipation: Straight Talk on the Last Taboo Subject

Posted on by
2

I have decided after many years of dealing with complaints of constipation both in the ER and in correctional facilities that bowel health is the last taboo subject.  We all received “The Talk” (about sex and reproductive health) when we were adolescents.  But nobody seems to talk about how to have a proper bowel movement.  It is a subject that inevitably causes giggling and uncomfortable laughter.  It is not spoken of in polite society.  As a result many people do not understand how their bowels work.  I have found this to be a big problem in the jails I work in.  Inmates complain of constipation when they are not really constipated.  They are bowel-fixated when there is no reason for them to be.  Often, they need education more than they need laxatives. To this end, I want to discuss several essential factors relating to understanding and treating constipation that may help make your correctional medicine practice a little easier. Continue reading →