My doctor is not
just my doctor, he is a friend. We mutually enjoy good books, good music and,
as his wife is an excellent cook, good food.
He also has a renowned cellar and at this wintry time of year, there is nothing
better than good friends, good food, good conversation and a ramble through his
“liquid gallery” of excellent wine.
This was how we
spent Friday evening, and I have to admit that after such splendid fare, we
were all somewhat ‘more amiable’ than normal. During the after meal cognac(s),
discussion turned to how I was feeling as he had prescribed the above for me
recently. I replied that they were having the required effect but was puzzled
as to how he or any of his colleagues in the medical world could keep up to
date with the vast array of pain killers coming on to the market and how he
(and they) knew which was right under often very different circumstances.
He admitted it
was hard work to keep track of that section of the market and that he and his
colleagues often felt there should be a simpler method of drug nomenclature,
which patients could more readily understand.
Now, perhaps it
was the effects of a splendid and convivial evening but we let our imaginations
run crazy, and between us we made a pretty decent job of boiling down all the
pain killers into a rough ‘user-guide’ to strength as follows:
Category 1
The
“weaker-than-water-drugs-more-of-a-placebo-than-anything” type
Category 2
The “careful-now-don’t-go-crazy-or-nasty-side-effects-start” type
Category 3
The “ONLY-three-per-day-and-NO-more” type
Category 4
The “ONE-PER-DAY-FOR-5-DAYS-THEN-STOP” type
Category 5
NO-ALCOHOL-UNDER-ANY-CIRCUMSTANCES-they-blow-your-mind" type
OK, it’s only a
‘drunken’ guide, but if this sort of labelling was placed in front of the
end-user on every packet, by every manufacturer, perhaps less drugs would be
used as well as us ignorant people understanding more of what we were doing to
our bodies….
How am I? Deliciously happy…..
Until next time
(and no more drugs),
Peripatetic
Scribe
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ReplyDeleteThis sort of labelling would definitely be more useful than the current labelling! Nevertheless, as it would significantly reduce the consumption of painkillers, I'm sure we will never be able to actually enjoy it!
ReplyDeleteA nice one, P.S.!
Thank you
Lucana
So right, Lucana...the big drug companies would NEVER allow their profits to be reduced!!!
ReplyDelete