50 years ago, drug abuse was higher among physicians than the public
The physician as addict —
The rate of drug abuse or addiction among physicians is from 30 to 100 times that of the general public.... The American Medical Association estimates that some 60,000 of the country’s 316,000 doctors misuse drugs of various kinds. The drug abuser among physicians has a predisposing personality for addiction, and suffers from overwork and fatigue. Since drugs are readily available, they are an occupational hazard. — Science News, April 5, 1969
Update
The “30 to 100 times” figure was found to be inflated, partly as a result of statistical methods used at the time. But drug abuse remains a problem among physicians today. A 2018 review in Current Opinion in Anesthesiology says 15.4 percent of doctors say they abuse drugs or alcohol, compared with an estimated 12.6 percent among the public. Most commonly abused are alcohol, painkillers like opioids and stimulants such as cocaine. Abuse likely occurs due to easy access and work stress, as well as burnout, which a 2018 report in Mayo Clinic Proceedings says affects 54.3 percent of doctors.
C’mon everyone! We can win the war if you all pitch in and inhale, smoke, inject, consume, or otherwise metabolize the crap out of the enemy. I know this country can count on you to do your best. In the words of the great war criminal president, “Bring it on!”
I think it's so great how those reasonable Drug Users have been dedicated to disposing of their free needles so responsibly.
Probably learned the habit from the stunning displays of beer cans/bottles and other alcoholic beverage containers that have proudly adorned the berms on America's highways and byways for decades, tossed their tastefully by true American patriots who only drink American made swill.
And lets not forget those beaches, parks, walking trails, parking lots etc, we have a long proud tradition in the country of broken glass and empty alcoholic beverage containers to show the rest of the world how responsible we are as a people.
If it wasn't for these patriots, I would have never been able to cash in a quick $10-15 a week or more during the 1950s -1960s picking up the bottles and cashing them back in for pocket money as a kid.
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