Pubdate: Mon, 06 Mar 2006
Source: Gulf Times (Qatar)
Copyright: Gulf Times Newspaper, 2006
Contact:  http://www.gulf-times.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3835

PROVEN ADDICTS MAY NOT BE PRESCRIBED NARCOTIC DRUGS

NARCOTIC drugs may not be prescribed to any patient who is a proven 
drug addict, deputy head of the Anesthesia Department and head of 
Pain Clinic at the Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Dr Fadhil Abbas 
al- Jalabi, has said.

Speaking to a local Arabic daily in the context of three doctors 
working for elite private hospitals having been referred to the 
Criminal Court on "drug abuse" charges, he said medical procedures 
must be observed while prescribing narcotic drugs.

"Such drugs should be prescribed only in cases of extreme pain 
following surgeries and this cannot be continued for more than one 
week. In case the condition of the patient required continued 
administration of the drugs, the type of the drug shall be replaced."

Dr al-Jalabi pointed out that only cancer patients are allowed to 
take such drugs on a continuous basis, irrespective of being an 
addict or not since the main objective in treating many of the cancer 
cases is to alleviate pain.

Anesthesia consultant in Doha Clinic Hospital, Dr Ahmad Khattab said 
doctors can find out whether his patient is a drug addict or not by 
noting the patient's frequent visits to the doctor complaining of 
pain which has no clinical evidence.

According to legal expert Advocate Yusuf al-Zaman, Article 36 of the 
anti-drugs and intoxicant law says that any doctor who prescribes 
narcotic or psychotropic drugs for unwarranted purposes is punishable 
with imprisonment up to 10 years and not less than 5 years and a 
minimum fine of QR100,000 that could go up to QR200,000.

Arabic daily Arrayah quoted the lawyer as saying that any one who 
helps in the act by being a willing accomplice is punishable by the 
same penalties.

The prescription of narcotic and psychotropic drugs in hospitals and 
clinics is also regulated by a decision issued by the Ministry of Health.

According to the decision, certified doctors working for private 
clinics are entitled to keep narcotic drugs in their clinics for 
treatment purposes on the condition that they keep them in a safe 
place to be prescribed only under the supervision of a specialist doctor.

"The pharmacist may not dispense any of these drugs without a 
prescription by a certified doctor. And the drugs prescribed by the 
doctors should not be for a period exceeding 10 days. The pharmacies 
may refuse to issue such drugs after five days of its endorsement by 
the doctor. These materials should not be conceded to others under 
any circumstance."

About the criminal responsibility of doctors prescribing drugs with 
no proper medical intention, al-Zaman said that doctors in such cases 
are subject to the law of narcotics, just like the common people.

Local doctors also have raised alarms about the reckless usage of 
narcotic drugs saying that the abuse of such drugs for longer periods 
could result in addiction.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman