METH'S IMPACT ON HOSPITALS MIXED

The booming meth epidemic is not only putting a strain on law
enforcement but also on hospitals, according to two recent studies.

The surveys, conducted by the National Association of Counties, shows
that 73 percent of county and regional hospitals reported an increase
in the number of meth-related cases over the last five years, and 14
percent of hospitals said meth-related cases account for up to 20
percent of all patients. Forty-seven percent of the hospitals said
meth is the most commonly found narcotic involved in their drug cases.

However, McDowell officials say that trend doesn't apply here.

"Rarely are patients seen in The McDowell Hospital's Emergency
Department that can be definitively tied to meth labs," Emergency
Department Medical Director Dr. Audrey Grant stated in a release.
"While staff may suspect that some patients presenting with burns or
respiratory problems have a meth relationship, without proof, the ED
staff makes no judgments and proceeds with treatment."

The studies' results are based on 200 responses from hospital
emergency room personnel in 39 states, including North Carolina.
Eight North Carolina hospitals participated in the survey. The
authors of the studies would not reveal which hospitals or counties
participated, citing confidentiality.

Many hospitals have developed protocol for how to handle patients who
have been exposed to meth manufacturing, especially children.

"Emergency Department patients known to be directly meth related are
usually children, brought in by the Department of Social Services,"
Grant said in the local release. "A specific protocol of
decontamination, medical screening and evaluation is performed on
these children known to have been living in a meth lab environment."

In addition to the human toll, meth has driven up the cost of health
care in many places, the survey said. Fifty-six percent of hospitals
in the survey reported an increase in overall costs and expenditures
as a result of meth-related cases. But only one of the eight North
Carolina hospitals surveyed reported an increase.

Because of its addictive nature, many meth users do not have jobs,
and, therefore, do not have insurance. This, in turn, creates another
problem faced by hospitals, as 83 percent of those surveyed said that
patients involved in meth-related cases are uninsured.

Winston-Salem Journal reporters Monte Mitchell and Mary M. Shaffrey
contributed to this story.