Psychology

The process of drug development has become a sensitive part in the modern societies with the increasing cases of substances of abuse produced in clandestine laboratories. In addition to clandestine chemists, pharmaceutical chemists have infiltrated into the development of highly addictive drugs in the name of pain management. One of these drugs that was developed for managing pain but later on ended being abused is OxyContin, manufactured by Purdue Pharma. OxyContin was later discovered to cause a number of negative effects after two people died and others got negatively impacted after overdosing. The paper looks at this controversy, the impact of the drug on humans and the possible solution to avoid the problem in the future.

What is the drug controversy
A number of drugs have been identified to have been abused by a majority of Americans. The abused drugs include stimulants, oral sedatives, antipsychotic agents and opiods which have been used in the manner not intended by the physicians or prescribers (Cicero, 2005). One of these drugs is OxyContin. OxyContin is indicated for the management of persistent pain due to oxycodone, the active ingredient of OxyContin.

Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic analgesic in the class of narcotics and is only prescribed in chronic, sever pain or in terminal cancers. The formulation of OxyContin gives it the property to release the active component, oxycodone, over a phase of 12 hours giving the non-medical users the effect of heroin-like euphoria which they most need over along period of time.

However, other drug users prefer instant effect which they also gain through chewing the drug (Suleman, 2002). Others remove the coating of sustained-release to experience the rapid release of the drug effects. This has led to the abuse of the drug instead of it being used for the purpose it was made for.

How did the controversy start
Purdue Pharma is blamed to have caused all the problems of introducing an illegal pain killer into the market. The painkiller led to the killing of two people and the further poisoning of five more people due to overdoses. This raised alarm and the attorneys at the South-Eastern Kentucky quickly filed a suit against OxyContins manufacturer.

A Harlan urologist, working for Pineville Community Hospital was also responsible in the prescribing of the illegal drug to some people who were mentioned by the attorneys in the South-Eastern Kentucky. The Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin was alleged to have lured the doctors to prescribe the illegal drug to patient without indicating the side effects of the drug (Thompson, 2001). The patients presented signs of euphoria, mimicking the effect caused by heroin.

Why the case of OxyContin a controversy
A controversy arises when a drug is used in other purposes not related to its actual use. For instance, the case of OxyContin poses a great controversy since the drug was manufactured in the intention of managing chronic pain. The manufacturer, Purdue Pharma, never indicated the heroin-like effects on the drug package despite the manufacturers consent on this issue. After the drug being discovered to have such effects, it has been abused by many young people.

Biological and Psychological Impact on the Individual
OxyContin, an agonist opiod, elicits its analgesic effect depending on the dosage (Cicero, 2005). This implies that the patients with chronic pain and terminal cancers are meant to take more doses to feel better. The drug is different from other analgesics like acetaminophen and aspirin which have a threshold to their efficacy. The biological and psychological mechanisms of OxyContin are suggested to be due to the stimulation of opiod receptors which cause an array of physiological effects.

Physiologically, the drug can cause short term effects including nausea, constipation, sedation, dizziness, sweating, dry mouth and headache. Psychological effects of OxyContin involve the addiction to the drug since it is a narcotic agent. The users are observed to have abnormal behaviours. Other impacts may include a compromised immune system when the drug use is not clinically managed (Suleman, 2002). Other individuals may present signs of abnormal vision and a compromised immunity due to overuse of OxyContin.

Societal Impact of OxyContin
In the name of pain management, the society has been driven into a mass of drug users and addicts. Unfortunately, the drugs which have proved to manage terminal cancers and other chronic pain are derived from the opiods which are highly addictive (Thompson, 2001). The increased utilization of opium in the manufacture of pain drugs has changed the society to be drug abusers. Perhaps, pain researchers should find out an alternative for opiates.

The economic impact of OxyContin is a two way. The drug manufactures are making astronomical profits as the drug users and addicts are digging deep into their pockets to satisfy their daily requirements of the drug in order to attain the euphoria (Suleman, 2002). This as a result has led to increased crimes because money is needed to buy the drug and in case the money gets inefficient, drug users will indulge in criminal activities like robbery and murder to find resources to buy OxyContin.

The science of drug development should weight the impact of the drug being developed in order to strike a balance between the benefits and the risks involved after the drug has been released for distribution in hospitals and the dispensing to the patients (Suleman, 2002). Instead, pharmaceutical such as Purdue Pharma have based their interests in the profit maximization while exposing the people into a number of risks including health, social and economic problems.

Possible Solutions
Traditionally, the process of drug development is highly regulated and all the stages are tested to check on the total quality and efficacy. However, this regulation may be skipped by greedy pharmaceutical companies who are eager in ripping enormous profits from their products even if the product is illegal. The government FDA should be able to monitor any abuse of scientific practices. The drug manufacturers should label clearly all the side effects of their drugs so that the patient has a prior knowledge of the impacts of the drugs.