Description | Addiction is defined as a chronic neurobiological disease influenced by various factors (hereditary, psychosocial, environmental, and spiritual) that contribute to its development and presentation8,9 |
Addiction is characterized by 1 or more of the behaviour problems documented in the 4 Cs of addiction: loss of control over use; continued use despite consequences; compulsion to use; and craving8,9 |
Common facts | Annually, 20% of Canadians experience mental health or addiction problems, and about 20% of people with mental disorders have concurrent substance use10 |
Many people with addiction are of lower socioeconomic status and are at risk of being alienated from the health care system |
Evidence indicates that patients with addiction are at increased risk of receiving inadequate pain management owing to health care providers’ lack of knowledge about managing patients with addiction and their fear of exacerbating patients’ addiction by prescribing opioids.4,11 Effective pain management is an essential part of high-quality care in order to ensure quality of life. It is the right of all patients, whether they have addictions or not |
There is a lack of evidence regarding the risks of using controlled substances in terminally ill patients with a remote or current history of substance abuse. It is commonly accepted that patients with a medical illness complicated by pain and psychological distress are at greater risk of aberrant drug-related behaviour2 |