Should Doctors Treat Pain and Drug Addiction?
A doctor in Fort Lauderdale recently had a patient’s family file a wrongful death suit against him when their loved one committed suicide after allegedly developing drug addiction while being treated by the doctor.
Dr. Michael Lazzopina advertises himself as a medical professional who treats both chronic pain and drug addiction, but the lawsuit filed against the doctor claims that he turned Benjamin Eiseman into an addict by prescribing him painkillers and anti-anxiety medication for about two and a half years. The Coral Springs, Florida, resident was an electrician and 30 years old when he died of a painkiller overdose using pills prescribed by Lazzopina.
The Accusation: The Creation of Drug Addiction That Led to Drug Overdose
How does Eiseman’s family claim that Dr. Lazzopina turned their loved one into a drug addict? By handing him an oxycodone prescription before ordering an MRI to confirm that he had an injury and then, later, for neglecting to lower the amount of his prescription when his back injury improved. Additionally, Eiseman’s family says that Lazzopina never provided Eiseman with a referral to a drug addiction specialist.
Dr. Lazzopina is 85 years old and a urology specialist, though he is board certified in pain management. Pain management and drug detox have been the focus of his practice of late, if recent newspaper ads offering drug addiction treatment and pain management treatment are any indication. Lazzopina is also certified by the federal government to prescribe certain medications to treat addiction.
The lawsuit filed against Lazzopina goes on to describe him as a part time employee at the Fort Lauderdale Pain Relief Center where he allegedly sees as many as 44 patients in a single day.
The Defense: Drug Addiction or Domestic Problems?
Lazzopina’s lawyer maintains that the doctor did nothing wrong and neither did the clinic. He puts the weight of blame for Eiseman’s drug addiction and suicide fully on Eiseman claiming that the electrician was “doctor shopping” to procure multiple prescriptions from multiple doctors in order to supplement his addiction. He also says that Eiseman was using illegal substances as well when he died.
Lazzopina’s lawyer further points out that Eiseman’s suicide came just days after his wife kicked him out of their home. The lawyer suggests that his suicide was more indicative of his emotional state over his domestic situation than his issues with drug addiction.
Who is Responsible for the Results of Drug Addiction?
This question is one that has been asked often in the courts over the past few years, but it’s not one that has uniformly been answered the same way. In some cases, teenagers and young adults who give their medication or any substance of addiction to a peer who ultimately ends up dying as a result of overdose or an accident have been given serious jail time for their choice. On the other hand, doctors who prescribe medications that ultimately result in the development of drug addiction for their patient and, in cases such as this, death due to overdose, aren’t always treated as harshly by the courts.
Who is responsible for drug overdose? The person who takes the pills and/or drugs or the person who gave them to him or her in the first place? What do you think?