paternashizm!

There is a big push in modern medicine to stop being so paternalistic. Doctors don't always know what is in a patient's best interest and we can't force them to do or not do anything. This principle gets harped on over and over and is the topic of many pop medicine articles. However, apparently there is one exception; heroin addicts: There is a new drug for treating heroin addiction called Suboxone. It contains Buprenorphine which prevents heroin from working, prevents withdrawal, comes in an easy to take pill, and only causes a fraction of the effect of heroin. It also contains Naloxone, which does nothing whatsoever when taken in the pill form. So why give Naloxone? Because when you get all antsy, try to crush your pills up, melt them down, and inject them, Naloxone becomes active and does the exact opposite of heroin, i.e. an immediate and intense heroin withdrawal. "That way, they'll only try that once!" Oh yeah, that sounds good. I mean it's the exact same thing we said about my dog and her electric dog collar, but whatever.