Dr. Chapman participates in prescription drug abuse summit

GAINESVILLE &#8213; Jack M. Chapman Jr., M.D., an ophthalmologist with Gainesville Eye Associates, recently took part in a national summit on prescription drug abuse at Georgia State University in Atlanta.<br /> <br /> A past president of the Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) and a member of the MAG Foundation board of directors, Dr. Chapman participated in a panel discussion with medical, law enforcement, public policy, substance abuse and legislative leaders from across the state and country that focused on solutions to the growing problem of prescription drug abuse.<br /> <br /> In addition, Dr. Chapman introduced the lunch speaker, Tom Bour, a registered nurse who provided a personal perspective as a recovering prescription drug addict.<br /> <br /> The summit was hosted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency.<br /> <br /> According to Dr. Chapman, abuse of prescription drugs is the fastest-growing segment for drug abuse in the United States. <br /> <br /> "Georgia faces an epidemic of prescription drug abuse," Dr. Chapman said. "More than 500 people died in one year from overdoses of prescription drugs alone in Georgia, compared to 86 people who died from overdosing on illegal drugs. That is nearly six times more deaths."<br /> <br /> As part of the day-long summit on March 2, experts also made presentations on prescription drug trafficking and abuse, teen abuse, monitoring programs, and medical community perspective.