NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwire) -- 08/07/12 -- Many Americans are familiar with educational films and "after school specials" that depict the dangers of illicit drug use. A new feature film promises to look at narcotic abuse from a slightly different angle. Filmmaker Nick Martel, in a new documentary called Narcotic Misconceptions, takes a close look at opiate addiction among citizens of Massachusetts' southern shore -- an area where, despite valiant efforts to raise awareness, drug abuse remains a major problem. This issue has also drawn the attention of drug detox and recovery expert Lex Kogan.
Martel's new film features interviews with many knowledgeable sources, including several healthcare providers who comment on the medical aspects of opiate addiction. Additionally, the film features interviews with numerous public officials -- including local mayors -- who weigh in on the immense social cost of drug abuse. Martel also interviews the parents of kids who have struggled with drug addiction, particularly addiction to opiates.
The film has drawn praise for surveying the many different angles of drug abuse -- from the medical facets to social and legal ones. It has also drawn commentary from Lex Kogan, a man who has long studied drug addiction and rehabilitation methods, and who helped pioneer the Ibogaine drug treatment movement in America. Kogan has responded to Martel's film, and the issues it raises, with a new statement to the press.
For Lex Kogan, opiate addiction is primarily a healthcare concern -- not simply a criminal matter. "Before we focus on the preventative side of opiate addiction, we must first remove the damaging social stigmas associated with opiate abuse within our communities," says Kogan in his new press statement. "The decriminalization of drug abusers, along with progressive education programs, will serve as a guiding light for the road ahead."
Social stigma surrounding opiate addiction is an ongoing concern to many Massachusetts natives. In 2009, the state commissioned a report on this ongoing health epidemic. The details are chronicled in a document called the Oxycontin and Heroin Commission Report. The report, like Lex Kogan, stresses the severity of the social stigma related to opiate addiction.
The report says, "Because of the stigma surrounding substance abuse, the opiate epidemic is left in the shadows and little light has been put upon reforming the policies involving substance abuse" in the state of Massachusetts.
Also like Lex Kogan, the film indicates that prevention might be the best option for curbing the scourge of opiate addiction. Pointing to educational efforts as well as public health initiatives, the movie features one medical expert who says that "an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. Prevention is the way to go."
ABOUT:
Lex Kogan is passionate about delivering safe and healthy detox options and rehabilitation services to those caught in the throes of drug addiction, particularly to opiates such as Oxycontin. A student of drug rehabilitation methodologies since 2001, Kogan played an instrumental role in bringing the Ibogaine Treatment approach to America. Kogan continues to use advanced medical methodologies to help individuals end the vicious cycle of addiction.
