Hello, Friend: My name is [Fill in your name, here], and I am an addict. My name can definitely go in this blank. I became addicted to the prescription sleeping medication AmbienTM in the late 1990s. I had developed a peculiar obsession with getting “enough” sleep, and believed that the slogan “better living through chemistry” (the slogan of the DuPont Corporation in the late 1960s) applied especially well to me! I thought Ambien made me perform better, because after using it, I slept...

I have had many discussions with administrators and chiefs of staff since the last issue appeared on disruptive physician behavior. One concept that seems to be most troubling is the “lack of insight” the physician displays when confronted about their behavior. This is a type of denial that is often associated with chemical dependency. However, this is also one of the unique characteristics of personality disorders.