Careful pain management does not kill. Prescribing pain medication properly is not illegal . Pharmacists often err on the side of caution in filling prescriptions. Most people facing a very serious illness fear dying in pain as much as they fear death itself. But 95 percent of pain, including the worst cancer pain, can be controlled.
Medical research demonstrates the utility and safety of opioid use for otherwise untreatable pain.
Major medical organizations have created policies and standards to advise doctors on the findings and resultant practice guidelines. A recent joint statement by the American Pain Society and the American Academy of Pain Medicine outlines current goals and standards for the use of opioids in pain management. Despite this activity at the top of the profession, pain management in hospitals, nursing homes and doctors' offices in the United States falls far short of the standard for medical care. Doctors only recently had good pain management training available to them. They are often very reluctant to use opioids effectively, even when a patient is dying.