Opioids frustration
I’m writing in regard to the opioid crisis and its impact on our medical system.
My wife was diagnosed last July with cancer and underwent radiation and chemotherapy. Subsequently, because of tissue damage from the radiation, she developed a fistula, an infection that went undiagnosed for six weeks, was nearly fatal and has left her in excruciating pain for three months now.
It is acknowledged to be one of the most painful conditions known to medicine. Yet, because of hysterical and irrational pressure on doctors from insurance companies and government, we have had a terrible time trying to get effective pain medicine.
Opiate drugs have been around for thousands of years. Every educated adult is aware of their drawbacks, yet there are still no more effective medicines for the worst kind of pain.
Now, because of opiate hysteria, responsible adults with no criminal record or history of addiction are treated like drug fiends out trolling the streets for a fix. We are in the ludicrous position where highly trained doctors are being dictated to by medically ignorant bureaucrats as to what pain medications they can prescribe and how much.
If we can’t trust doctors to administer medication, who can we trust — political flunkies with nothing better to do to justify their parasitical salaries?
This is all just more evidence, if any was needed, that America under Donald Trump is descending into previously undreamed of depths of corruption, stupidity and evil. All of this must end, or it will be the end of us all.
Brent Hightower
Hilo
Trash cans, please?
Whatever happened to the trash cans by the baseball fields? Seems like most weekends, tons of people come out to watch their kids play ball, and they make a day out of it, barbecuing, drinking and just having fun.
And of course there is nothing anywhere for them to toss their garbage. There used to be about five trash cans along the whole stretch of the parking areas, but now nothing.
So people leave trash and junk everywhere, not picking up and taking home to dump when they leave, making a mess of the area and causing the county to do extra work cleaning up, when before all the county had to do was just empty the trash cans.
And everyone wonders why Hilo is going downhill. Can’t we get our trash cans back?
Xiao Ying Sun
Hilo