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Monsters and Critics / Cliffside Malibu “Drunk Indians” Is Not Funny; Addiction Experts Speak Up March 7, 2013

March 7, 2013

“Drunk Indians” Is Not Funny; Addiction Experts Speak Up

“‘A furnace full of drunk Indians’ – that’s how a character on the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly characterized Arizona and the first inhabitants of our land,” says Richard Taite.

 

Celebrity doctors with television deals and cavalier Hollywood writers for sitcoms have done serious damage with their remarks about addiction and treating addicts in public view for ratings and money, according to Richard Taite, a recognized leader in the recovery community, the author of a new book on addiction (“Ending Addiction for Good: The Groundbreaking, Holistic, Evidence-Based Way to Transform Your Life”) and the co-founder and CEO of Cliffside Malibu, a leading treatment center in Los Angeles.

The premise of “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” is a prime example of questionable medicine according to Taite, who has come out strongly against Dr. Drew Pinsky’s attempts to help addicted stars achieve sobriety.

Mr. Taite refutes Dr. Drew’s claim made yesterday on Dr. Oz’s television show that treating addicts (celebrity or otherwise) on a TV show does not impact in anyway the outcome or quality of their treatment.  Mr. Taite believes Dr. Oz’s viewing public deserves an educated second opinion to what appears to be Dr. Drew’s contention that flies in the face of all medically accepted practices in the treatment of substance abuse.

“Please keep in mind that this honest difference of opinion is not in any way directed to Dr. Drew personally, but rather at his brand of reality-show-cum-addiction treatment,” says Mr. Taite.

In question, here, is whether the pursuit of profit has superseded the genuine interest of the patient.  Mr. Taite has labeled this kind of TV as “addictainment.”

Adding further fuel to this fire is the sitcom “Mike & Molly” on CBS.

“‘A furnace full of drunk Indians’ – that’s how a character on the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly characterized Arizona and the first inhabitants of our land,” says Richard Taite.

“Not only is such a characterization insensitive and blatantly racist, but it also stigmatizes a whole group of individuals and helps keep them out of treatment. Such offhanded remarks are more than hurtful; they identify all Native Americans as poor, addicted and on the fringes of society. For someone who wants help overcoming addiction and may have little access to the best recovery methods, these kinds of statements can further demoralize them, keeping those in need from help.”

Mr. Taite adds, “There are twenty-one federally recognized Native American tribes in Arizona alone. Native Americans suffer higher rates of poverty, suicide and addiction than the average population, yet too many do not have adequate access to top-notch care.”

“This leaves the entire population vulnerable,” says Constance Scharff, PhD, Addiction Researcher for Cliffside Malibu. “The devastation of addiction on individual lives is compounded by abuse and neglect often suffered by children at the hands of those who are addicted. It is both insensitive and reprehensible to ridicule a group suffering these kinds of social problems.”

Taite continues, “It seems there is a culture in our media that seeks to ridicule or exploit addicts. In a time when reality shows like Celebrity Rehab are plagued by horrific death rates among former cast members and shows like Mike & Molly ridicule those in need of help – we must suggest a reckoning with regard to how addicts are portrayed on television. With accidental overdoses of prescription drugs alone reaching epidemic levels, these ‘jokes’ simply are not funny.”

 

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Cliffside Malibu

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The Inquisitr / Cliffside Malibu Former Child Star, Treatment Center Attack Dr. Drew Pinsky Approach February 25, 2013

February 25, 2013

Former Child Star, Treatment Center Attack Dr. Drew Pinsky Approach

 

A former child star has taken aim at the tactics used by Dr. Drew Pinsky from VH1?s Celebrity Rehab and the philosophy of the show itself.

Commenting through a publicist to The Inquisitr, Dr. Damon Raskin, medical director of addiction at Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center and former child star, called it “disheartening” that treatment “would be compromised for entertainment purposes.”

“The most important part of treatment is the trust that develops between doctor and patient, and this cannot happen in front of the public on television,” Raskin said, adding that it was “appalling that we as a society can encourage this voyeurism in the name of helping people.”

Raskin continued: “Real rehab is done in private, getting to the real root of addiction with medical and psychological help, and not to treat addicted celebrities as ‘special’ by putting it all out there for the world to see.”

Richard Taite, president of Cliffside and author of Ending Addiction for Good, agreed with his medical director’s assessment.

“It’s truly repugnant that the general public isn’t afforded the opportunity to understand exactly why this type of exploitation is so harmful,” Taite told The Inquisitr. “A few years ago … I saw an episode of Celebrity Rehab and was so bothered by it that I sent out a press release inviting anyone currently on the show to come in to Cliffside Malibu free of charge for real treatment. I knew just from watching one episode that that show was  going to end up really harming people.”

Tate and Raskin, a former child star on Eight Is Enough, have pointed to the five deaths that have occurred in the last two years involving former cast members of Celebrity Rehab as proof, and even former pop star Richard Marx has taken aim at Pinsky, comparing his work to that of “Kervorkian.”

Pinsky has steered clear of taking responsibility for the show’s questionable track record, keeping his comments centered on the McCready tragedy.

In an interview with People, Pinsky said McCready “was fearful of stigma and ridicule” and added that “she agreed with me that she needed to make her health and safety a priority.”

“Unfortunately it seems that Mindy did not sustain her treatment,” Pinsky added.

The McCready funeral is set for Tuesday, February 25, in McCready’s hometown of Fort Myers, Florida, The Associated Press noted.

Do you believe Dr. Drew Pinsky is using troubled child stars for TV exploitation, or are his efforts well-meaning?

Cliffside Malibu

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Celebzter / Cliffside Malibu As Mindy McCready marks the FIFTH ‘Celebrity Rehab’ cast member to die, an expert calls the show a ‘farce as a foundation for treatment’ February 20, 2013

February 20, 2013

As Mindy McCready marks the FIFTH ‘Celebrity Rehab’ cast member to die, an expert calls the show a ‘farce as a foundation for treatment’

 

Since Mindy McCready’s death from apparent suicide on Sunday night, attention has turned to  Dr. Drew Pinsky’s VH1 reality show “Celebrity Rehab”, after it emerged that she was the fifth member to die after supposedly being treated on the show.

“I think “Dr” Drew Pinsky should change his name to Kevorkian. Same results.” singer Richard Marx wrote on his Twitter page.
After receiving some backlash, Marx amended his claim: “I went too far with the Kevorkian crack. It is, however, my opinion that what Dr. D does is exploitation and his TV track record is not good.”

Sar far, Rodney King died in 2012 after drowning in his swimming pool. King’s autopsy revealed he had a mixture of cocaine, alcohol and marijuana in his system at the time, which contributed to his death. And Grease actor Jeff Conaway, who was a participant in season one and two, died in 2011 of health complications he apparently contracted from years of substance abuse.

On the season in which McCready appeared, two other people succumbed to their addictions. Mike Starr, bassist of the band Alice in Chains, died in 2011 after a drug overdose, and former “Real World” cast member Joey Kovar died in 2012 from opiate intoxication, believed to be in the form of a prescription painkiller he was taking.

With the total number of five people, who were part of the television show, ending up dead as a result of their addictions in the last two years, the backlash is understandable.

It seems that Dr. Pinsky’s rehab treatment on his TV show, which many professionals deem damaging and more for entertainment purposes than actual treatment only benefits the doctor, the production and the network.

Richard Taite, CEO of Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center is at pains to point out that rehab treatment for entertainment purposes is wrong,  as it does damage to already damaged people.

“Mindy McCready’s death is certainly a tragedy and one that was perhaps preventable if she had gotten real treatment,” says Richard Taite, co-author of the best selling book, Ending Addiction For Good. “Celebrity Rehab is a farce as a foundation for treatment. It is at best info-tainment – a television show that exploits the fragility of individuals who are in desperate need of help. Recovery does not happen in twenty-one days for individuals suffering profoundly from multiple disorders, such as Mindy McCready, and it does not occur under the view of millions of television viewers. One of the main needs any addict has is to develop a sincere, trusting relationship with a therapist and privately uncover the root causes of their addiction. This does not happen in a television show where addicts are part of a ‘cast’ and followed by television cameras 24 hours a day everywhere but in the bathroom! Those who suffer from depression, suicidal ideation, and addiction need long-term, private support in a safe environment. It is tragic that Ms. McCready did not receive that level of care.”

Dr. Drew, for his part, said he contacted McCready last month after her boyfriend’s death.

“When I heard she was struggling, I did reach out to her and urged her to go to take care of herself, get in a facility if she felt she needed,” he said. “Her biggest fear was the stigma of doing so and what people would think if she, God forbid, took care of herself. And this to me is the most distressing part of this story. She is a lovely woman, we have lost her, and it didn’t have to go down like this.”

What do you think? Should the show be pulled given people’s health and life are at stake?

 

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Cliffside Malibu

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Monsters and Critics / Cliffside Malibu Addictainment under fire: ‘Celebrity Rehab’ a disaster for many, addiction experts blast show February 20, 2013

February 20, 2013

Addictainment under fire: ‘Celebrity Rehab’ a disaster for many, addiction experts blast show

 

The entire premise of “Celebrity Rehab” is under fire with the recent suicide of country artist Mindy McCready, the fifth cast member death of Dr. Pinsky’s questionable treatment reality series on TV which many professionals deem damaging and more for entertainment purposes than actual treatment.

Mindy McCready, 37, is the fifth person who has appeared on “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” to die in the past two years.

The former country star apparently took her own life and killed her dog too on Sunday at her home in Heber Springs, Ark. Authorities say McCready died of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot to the head and an autopsy is planned. She left behind two young sons.

McCready had attempted suicide at least three times since 2005, as she struggled to cope amid a series of tumultuous public events that marked much of her adult life.

Speaking to The Associated Press in 2010, McCready said: “It is a giant whirlwind of chaos all the time…I call my life a beautiful mess and organized chaos. It’s just always been like that. My entire life things have been attracted to me and vice versa that turn into chaotic nightmares or I create the chaos myself. I think that’s really the life of a celebrity, of a big, huge, giant personality.”

Other “Celebrity Rehab” deaths include Joey Kovar, a member of MTV’s “Real World: Hollywood” died last August at the age of 29 of “opiate intoxication.” Kovar was on the series with McCready on the show’s third season in 2010.

Also dead: “Celebrity Rehab” Season 2 cast member Rodney King, dead at 47, his demise an accidental drowning, with alcohol, cocaine, marijuana and PCP found in his system.

Another “Celebrity Rehab” second season star was “Taxi” actor Jeff Conway, who died at age 60 in May 2011 with opiates and other drugs in his system.

Another third season “Rehab” cast member was Alice In Chains bassist Mike Starr, who died at the age of 44 in March 2011, addicted to heroin and other drugs and died of a drug overdose.

As the death toll among former “Celebrity Rehab” cast members grows, the question of whether the show does more harm than good, and if these addicts are truly getting the treatment they need is at the forefront of addiction specialists’ minds.

Dr. Drew, who treated the deceased cast members, released a statement after McCready’s death to People magazine:

“I am deeply saddened by this awful news. My heart goes out to Mindy’s family and children. She is a lovely woman who will be missed by many. Although I have not treated her for a few years, I had reached out to her recently upon hearing about the apparent suicide of her boyfriend and father of her younger children. She was devastated.”

Richard Taite, CEO of Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center, has a strong opinion about this pattern of failure celebrated on the smallscreen for entertainment.  He also co-authored the best-selling book, “Ending Addiction For Good.”

“Mindy McCready’s death is certainly a tragedy and one that was perhaps preventable if she had gotten real treatment,” says Mr. Taite, founder and CEO of the elite Cliffside Malibu addiction residential treatment center.

“Celebrity Rehab is a farce as a foundation for or example of treatment. It is at best info-tainment – a television show that exploits the fragility of individuals who are in desperate need of help. Recovery does not happen in twenty-one days for individuals suffering profoundly from multiple disorders, such as Mindy McCready, and it does not occur under the view of millions of television viewers. One of the main needs any addict has is to develop a sincere, trusting relationship with a therapist and privately uncover the root causes of their addiction. This does not happen in a television show where addicts are part of a ‘cast’ and followed by television cameras 24 hours a day! Those receiving real treatment do not have to seek refuge in a bathroom to get a few minutes to process their feelings alone! Those who suffer from depression, suicidal ideation, and addiction need long-term, private support in a safe, secure environment. It is tragic that Ms. McCready and the four other addicts who have died after being on Celebrity Rehab did not receive that level of care.”

 

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Cliffside Malibu

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Daily Inter Lake / SignatureMD New model for medicine Physician happy with concierge practice after four years February 18, 2013

February 18, 2013

New model for medicine Physician happy with concierge practice after four years

Dr. Doug Pitman takes calls from patients anytime and doesn’t mind consulting while on skis at Whitefish Mountain Resort. He even stops by their homes for consultations.

“I’m on call all the time,” he said. “When you know your patients as well as I know my group, you can really do a lot on the cellphone. But then again, I can see them instantly or later that day if I’m up skiing.”

After four years as a concierge physician at Whitefish Personalized Health Care, Pitman couldn’t be more enthusiastic about the risk he took after more than 30 years as a traditional family physician in Columbia Falls.

“In my mind, the concierge model is the biggest thing that’s happened to family doctors since we developed residency programs in the 1970s,” Pitman said.

Concierge doctors limit their patient base to provide personalized service and almost limitless availability to patients who pay an annual retainer.

Pitman works with a company called Signature MD to operate his practice and also now serves as the company’s acting medical director.

In that role, he serves as an information source to doctors considering concierge medicine and makes educational videos for patients and doctors for Signature MD’s

“They are the second biggest company that converts family practice and general internal medicine practices to the concierge model,” he said.

Pitman, 66, calls his concierge practice an anomaly because he works just 16 hours a week with a practice of about 100 patients. A full-time concierge physician typically maintains a patient base of 300 to 600 patients.

When he looked into the concierge model, Pitman wanted a way to continue practicing but on a smaller scale with a focus on wellness.

“I was burned out on traditional family practice as its evolved into running the numbers so you can keep your doors open,” he said. “Once I turned 62, I was free of debt and I could take a risk.”

He worked with Signature MD CEO Matt Jacobson to come up with what he calls a hybridized concierge practice where he could work part time with half-time malpractice insurance. Pitman said Signature MD’s research department performs thorough demographic studies of an area before working with a doctor to convert to the concierge model.

“Matt flew up and we did a week of basically recruiting patients,” he said.

The two came up with three different payment systems. His yearly retainer is $1,900 per patient with discounts for couples, half-time residents and a scholarship rate of $1,100.

His patients pay a retainer to Signature MD, which takes a percentage, then sends the rest to Pitman in quarterly payments. He maintains an office in the 1993 building in Whitefish but operates without employees or a billing service.

Pitman said the retainer pays for his availability and covers his overhead and salary.

“That frees me up to spend more time with patients and provide a much higher quality of care,” he said. “The last four years, I’ve gotten back to the basics of prevention and wellness.”

According to Pitman, his patients reap the benefit with his focus on their blood pressure, cholesterol levels and screenings by lowering their risk of heart disease, stroke and cancers of the breast, prostate and colon. He also makes certain they have their immunizations and see a dentist, dermatologist, ophthamologist and gynecologist, if appropriate, once a year.

“I don’t do any chronic pain management which is a big problem in family medicine,” he said. “There are chronic pain clinics. I don’t do any of that.”

His services include taking a medical history and a yearly executive physical examination. Pitman provides same-day appointments and said his contacts from 30 years practicing here get patients into specialists quickly.

If necessary, he makes house calls using his father’s old black bag from the 1950s.

“My dad was a doctor in New York on Long Island for about 35 years,” he said. “I think it was $3 for an office call, $5 for a house call and his records were all on 3X5 cards.”

Pitman’s annual executive physicals take two hours, include an hour follow-up visit and lab tests. He said Signature MD contracts with some state-of-the-art labs to assess cardiac and diabetes risk.

“The testing is sophisticated and it’s not unlike going to Mayo or Scripps and getting a very thorough examination each year,” Pitman said. “My patients look forward to it each year. They are very compliant, very interested in their own health. They have a lot to live for.”

Since becoming a concierge physician, Pitman said his biggest surprise was that patients want to talk and that getting to know patients pays off in better care. Sometimes the thing that concerns the patient the most comes out in the last 15 minutes of a two-hour exam.

“Nothing falls through the cracks because it is all about the time you spend with people,” he said. “The more time you spend with people, the more time you spend thinking about them and dictating a thoughtful physical.”

One patient, Benny Bee, the owner of six local radio stations, credits Pitman with saving his life. Bee became interested in the concierge system when he turned 65 and decided he needed regular “tune ups.”

He said he had known Pitman for years when he signed up as a concierge patient after reading his brochure. Bee liked the idea of not having to wait for two weeks to see a physician when he gets sick.

“Nowadays, it’s hard to get in to see a doctor if you’re in a hurry,” he said. “With concierge, I call to make an appointment and he says, ‘Just come on down’ or ‘I’m in your neighborhood so I’ll just stop by your house.'”

After signing up, Bee provided Pitman with the results of an executive physical he had received at the Mayo Clinic two years earlier. When he came in for the physical with Pitman, he said he was in the best shape of his life.

“I was down 20 pounds and had been exercising,” he said. “My blood work was great.”

Pitman recalled that he spent an hour going over Bee’s Mayo physical. It mentioned a test he should have had in the next three to six months but no one followed up to make sure he had it.

“I put him on my bicycle to do his wellness exam to write a prescription,” Pitman said.

He detected a problem and insisted that Bee go in for a treadmill test the next day for a heart evaluation. Three weeks later, he had triple bypass surgery to repair a main artery that was completely clogged and two others that were 70 percent clogged.

Now 68, Bee describes himself as 100 percent healthy. He remains completely sold on the personal relationship and quick access offered by concierge medicine.

He made a promotional video with Pitman and constantly recommends this model of medicine.

“If it wasn’t for me switching over to the concierge system, I probably wouldn’t be alive today,” Bee said. “Believe me it’s worth it. It pays.”

People interested in more information may visit the website

SignatureMD

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