drug abuse

The 5th “Vital Sign” & the Painkiller Epidemic (Part II of V)

By |2017-02-10T09:49:33-07:00August 6th, 2014|Behavioral Health|

Last week (in Part I of this 5-part series) I introduced the idea that contemporary pain management strategies have resulted in an epidemic of painkiller misuse and abuse that’s killing large numbers of people.  In fact, misuse and abuse of opiate prescription painkillers takes out more people every year than car crashes.  The run-up to the [...]

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Behavioral Health Annual Report

By |2017-02-10T09:50:47-07:00January 10th, 2013|Behavioral Health|

Our Behavioral Health Services team just finished and published our FY 12 Annual Report.  The new report identifies the number of clients served by service area, funding category and program; and includes programmatic financial reports of revenues, expenditures and administrative costs.  In it, you'll see that we received a total of about $1.46B in funding for FY 2012 for behavioral health services.  Our Agency [...]

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Protect Your Family – Get Rid of Drugs

By |2017-02-10T09:50:58-07:00September 28th, 2012|Behavioral Health, Preparedness, Prevention|

Prescription drugs serve a very important purpose in health care, when they’re used the right way.  That’s why physicians have to write the prescriptions – doctors who are trained to understand the purpose of the medication as well as the patient’s tolerance and the possibility of interactions. However, too many times, we keep medication after [...]

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Prescription Drug Abuse III

By |2017-02-10T09:51:27-07:00November 2nd, 2011|Prevention|

I know I read like a broken record- but prescription drug misuse and abuse is a huge public health issue not just here- but nationally.  The newest edition of CDC Vital Signs presents information about prescription painkiller overdoses in the United States and highlights promising strategies for addressing the issue. Please share this information broadly with [...]

Drug Facts Week

By |2011-11-01T09:20:06-07:00November 1st, 2011|Behavioral Health, General, Prevention|

Teens and drug experts across the land will connect for the 2nd annual National Drug Facts Week this week.  The week-long event is sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)- and brings together teens and scientific experts in community events across the country to discuss scientific facts about drug abuse- including prescription drug [...]

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Fed’s Release New Plan to Control Prescription Drug Abuse

By |2011-06-14T08:08:12-07:00June 14th, 2011|General|

More than 1,100 Arizonans died from drug poisoning, which is more than the number of Arizonans that die in car accidents every year.  This isn’t just an Arizona public health crisis, it’s a national one.  Last week the federal government released a new plan to address the national prescription drug abuse epidemic and announced new [...]

Substance Abuse in AZ

By |2010-07-19T13:58:25-07:00July 19th, 2010|Behavioral Health, Uncategorized|

Our Division of Behavioral Health Services is the point guard for substance abuse prevention & treatment in Arizona (also referred to as the Single State Authority for Substance Abuse Services at the federal level).  One of those concerns is the abuse of marijuana- which continues to be in high demand and abused in our state.  [...]

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America's Drug Abusers Going Gray

By |2010-07-12T09:55:36-07:00July 12th, 2010|Uncategorized|

The proportion of people admitted for drug abuse treatment over 50 nearly doubled between 1992 and 2008.  While alcohol still is the leading cause of admissions in this age group, sharp increases were noted in those needing treatment for heroin, cocaine and marijuana, according to the study published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health [...]

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America’s Drug Abusers Going Gray

By |2010-07-12T09:55:36-07:00July 12th, 2010|Uncategorized|

The proportion of people admitted for drug abuse treatment over 50 nearly doubled between 1992 and 2008.  While alcohol still is the leading cause of admissions in this age group, sharp increases were noted in those needing treatment for heroin, cocaine and marijuana, according to the study published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health [...]

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