So, looks like we have ANOTHER doctor accused of prescribing drugs that killed a celeb. This time it’s Michael Jackson’s doctor. Apparently, Jackson’s doctor injected propofol – a powerful anesthetic- to Jackson the night he died. Tox reports are not in but investigators believe the drug caused his heart to stop. Two years ago it was Anna Nicole Smith and the psychiatrist who prescribed a smorgaasbord of benzos to her in the months before her death.

Obviously, I am NOT a doctor. But I don’t need a medical degree to know that both these celebs has serious mental illnesses. You only had to watch one episode of Anna Nicole Smith’s reality television show to see that she was an addict. One look at Michael Jackson and you could tell he had – at the very least – some body-image issues (Body Dysmorphic Disorder).

Mental illnesses are like potato chips: Many of us have more than one. In the medical world they call it “co-morbidity.” In other words, you have more than one illness going on. Some research shows that at least 30 percent of addicts and alcoholics have at least one companion mental illness. Knowing this, wouldn’t you screen your patient for substance abuse if they came to your office looking like Michael Jackson or Anna Nicole Smith?

Where is the line between common-sense and criminal negligence? These doctors aren’t stupid. I truly believe that Anna Nicole’s doctor knew that Anna Nicole was a addict. Despite that knowledge, the doctor made a conscious decision to prescribe benzos to Ms. Anna Nicole Addict. Same with Michael. What kind of doctor injects Diprivan to help you sleep at night? Maybe to help you sleep DURING SURGERY but not to go nighty-night.

I believe these doctors were seduced by celebrity and money. But what about the doctors treating folks like you and me? Did your doctor screen you for substance abuse before writing you a ‘script for Xanax or Klonopin? Likewise, if you are in treatment for substance abuse, did your doctor screen your for depression and bipolar?

Let’s put it this way: It’s common practice for a doctor treating a diabetic to screen for thyroid disease and glaucoma. A doctor treating a patient with lung cancer would be negligent if she did not screen for emphysema and hypertension. We would be outraged at a doctor who did not look for comorbid disorders with these illnesses.

But we do nothing to doctors who fail to screen addicts and alcoholics for depression and bipolar and patients with mental illness for substance abuse.

Why is this? And when is it going to stop?

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    Last reviewed: 28 Jul 2009