What Is the Medical and Legal Definition of “Narcotics Abuse”?

Question by Kirk: What is the medical and legal definition of “narcotics abuse”?
If a patient suddenly discovered he had been given a diagnoses of “narcotics abuse”, what does that mean? It’s a false claim and it needs further investigation, and moreover, an explanation. But ,can you break it down for me? It immediately conjures up an extremely negative connotation for me.

Best answer:

Answer by KoalaMama
Let’s start at the basics. Narcotics are any of a group of drugs, such as heroin, morphine, and pethidine, that produce numbness and stupor. They are used medicinally to relieve pain but are sometimes also taken for their pleasant effects. Prolonged use may cause addiction, which leads to the abuse.

The definition of abuse would be “misuse, maltreatment, or excessive use.” So, the overindulgence in and dependence on said substance, leading to effects that are detrimental to the individual’s physical or mental health, or the welfare of others, would be defined as narcotics abuse.

In other words, narcotic use is considered abuse when people use narcotics to seek feelings of well-being apart from the narcotic’s pain-relief applications.

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

Dealing with e-cigarettes at work

Filed under: drug abuse definition

Employers may also find that electronic cigarettes fall outside their existing definitions of drugs in their drug and alcohol policies. Smoking areas. A key aim of the Act was to reduce exposure to second-hand smoke and confirm the … Whether or not …
Read more on CIPD (blog)

The Obamacare Sign-Ups No One Is Talking About

Filed under: drug abuse definition

Obamacare's first month was a mess. After nearly 40 days, HealthCare.gov still doesn't work right, derailing health insurance sign-ups for those in the more than 30 states using the website. But sign-up efforts in the states that aren't using …
Read more on Huffington Post