Carol Joseph continues to receive Pethidine injections

May 07, 2017 News

From 2008 to now, former APNU-AFC Councillor, Carol Joseph has drained taxpayers of $7M to feed her addiction to the pain killer, Pethidine.

Carol Joseph

But this figure is not the end of it. The cost of Joseph’s addiction has surpassed the estimated figure, and continues to grow. This is because her need for the narcotic medication is still being met by practitioners at Fort Wellington Hospital in Berbice. Her last known fix was Friday evening.
The cost for just one shot of Pethidine is US$35. Documents seen by Kaieteur News reveal that from 2008 to February last, Joseph was administered at least 1000 fixes.
Carol Joseph was being fed Pethidine every single day since October. During that period alone, she was given over 200 doses. Some days the drug- dependent councillor was administered more than one dose. This was the case even during the period of drug shortages experienced in Region Five.
Only recently, one Government official admitted to Kaieteur News that Joseph’s addiction was no secret to her colleagues in the People’s National Congress (PNC).
When cornered about the fact that Joseph’s addiction is being fed by the state for about nine years, the official said, “Well, we knew that, but we couldn’t just stop her.”
“We had to forget protocol. We couldn’t rush it and just stop her. As her friend, I consulted with another (APNU-AFC) party member, and we agreed to help her gradually. We didn’t want her to have a withdrawal syndrome, which can lead to suicide and so on,” the official said.
In addition to fuelling the woman’s addiction at the cost of taxpayers, the official also admitted to being aware of the fact that Joseph was being administered the narcotic medication for an illness that does not warrant the use of the highly addictive drug.
“Even if we recognised that they were wrong, we could not have rushed it. But yes, it is not common for one to prescribe Pethidine for somebody who has (name of illness provided).”
The official even shared his belief that Joseph may have some unresolved psychological issues.
“One would realise that she is a different type of person who requires extra attention…She is very forceful,” the official added.
While the maximum dosage for Pethidine is 100mg, records show that Joseph was sometimes injected with 200mg within a 24-hour period – 100mg in the morning and another such dose in the evening.
One well respected medical practitioner had made it abundantly clear that Pethidine is not intended for prolonged use.
The doctor, in an invited comment, had explained that Pethidine is highly addictive. This is why many countries have embarked on replacing it with morphine, which is just as effective, but less addictive.
But despite the ample availability of morphine here in Guyana, many doctors continue to prescribe the contentious Pethidine medication to their patients.
“The thing about Pethidine is that the more you give to a patient, the more they become addicted to it,” the medical consultant said.
It was highlighted that doctors would usually prescribe Pethidine just once or twice and then stop. But, Guyana’s continued use of the drug, has led the expert to conclude that the system may be creating addicts.
So, essentially, Carol Joseph is being seen as a victim of the system that continues to prescribe Pethidine. Her colleagues in government are yet to step in and help her with her addiction.
Joseph resigned from her post as a Councillor on the Region Five Democratic Council, following the startling revelations that were made by whistle-blower nurse, Sherilyn Marks.

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