Author's posts
How a systems approach can revolutionize pain and depression treatment
As a health care writer and patient advocate for over 27 years, I have interacted with thousands of patients who experience chronic severe pain, caregivers who support struggling family members, and clinicians who treat painful conditions. Depression a…
America’s democracy is on the brink: Will leaders act before it’s too late?
At age 80, I’m an “old guy.” I’ve been an avid reader and writer on multiple subjects all of my life. Though I write primarily about U.S. health care, I maintain a lively interest in politics generally. Since election day, IR…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is talking when they should be listening
On May 9-10, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held a workshop titled “Training health care providers on pain management and safe use of opioid analgesics — exploring the path forward.” I attended the workshop in person to o…
Why Americans are failing to keep up with essential knowledge
At age 80, I am an old man. I am also an experienced writer and voracious reader. I’ve been active in internet bulletin boards and social media interest groups since the 1980s—in what we used to call “users net” (USENET)—before the em…
The real cause of the opioid crisis isn’t what you think
For years, the U.S. public has been hearing that prescription opioid pain relievers are always and forever a bad thing—and that doctors and big pharma companies are supposedly responsible for an epidemic of addiction and drug overdose-related deaths. H…
