Joan Gadsby Update
November 19, 2001
November 19, 2001
Since the release of her internationally endorsed book "Addiction By Prescription" - one woman's triumph and fight for change and her presentation to the "Beat the Benzos" conference in London, England November 2000. Joan Gadsby has continued her consulting, public speaking, media publicity and advocacy regarding the continued indiscriminate prescribing and uninformed use of tranquillizers, sleeping pills and antidepressants. She has received hundreds of thousands of phone calls from across Canada the United States and from throughout the world on this issue which has reached epidemic proportions and which has been known to the WHO, the medical profession, health officials and pharmaceutical companies for over two decades.
She has called for a Full Scale Public Inquiry on this issue by Health Canada and the Canadian government. Joan presented to the Senate of Canada this fall on the state of the Canadian Healthcare System - pharmaceuticals, mental health and substance use. Recognized as an international expert, in July this year Joan presented to the World Assembly for Mental Health in Vancouver. She has been asked to present on addiction to prescription drugs at the World Forum on Drugs, Dependencies and Society in September 2002 in Montréal.
Impaired driving, health and safety in the work place, floppy baby syndrome, countless deaths from overdoses, career devastation, family dysfunction, insurance claims, social welfare costs, emergency room admissions, increased drug costs, physicians' and pharmacists' fees - the socio-economic costs are far-reaching affecting the quality of life of hundreds of thousands and costing millions of dollars worldwide.
Drug induced psychiatric disorders, mood and anxiety disorders, depression, suicide, violence, brain damage, paradoxical reactions are only a few of the insidious side effects of these legal drugs which can create "accidental addicts" of unsuspecting people who trust their doctors to "do no harm".
Recent high profile cases attracting media attention in Canada include: The Christine Nichols case in Ottawa, against the Canadian military and a coroner's inquest December 2001 into 20 year old Christena Constible's death by overdose in Abbotsford, BC.
Joan has expressed continuing concern regarding the medical professions' lack of medical expertise to help people going through the horrors of withdrawal, - (recognized and documented to be worse than cocaine and heroin), the lack of detox facilities and the continued overall lack of action and accountability in addressing this serious health issue.
Class action lawsuits are being explored in Canada and the United States similar to a $200 million funded case comprising 5000 litigants in the United Kingdom which went to the European Court of Human Rights.
Joan's book, "Addiction By Prescription" was also released in paperback this spring and is available online at www.amazon.com, www.chapters.indigo.ca, in bookstores or through her Canadian publisher: Key Porter Books, 70 The Esplanade, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5E 1R2. Phone: (416) 862 - 7777 Fax: (416) 862 - 2304 Hardcover: $29.95 - ISBN 1- 55263 - 156 - 7 Paperback: $19.95 - ISBN 1 - 55263 - 334 -9.
"Addiction By Prescription" was one of the biggest hits at the Frankfurt Germany Book Fair last October and it will be available in other languages in the future. International rights are available for the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe. Interested publishers/distributors can contact Joan Gadsby directly at the address, phone, fax number below or email joangadsby@pacificcoast.net.
An international version of her television documentary. "Our Pill Epidemic" - the shocking story of a society hooked on drugs which has been broadcast nationally (also available in video) is in development as is Joan's film project based on her book.
Copies of "Our Pill Epidemic" video (45 minutes) can be ordered
by fax 1-800-8296895 in North America
or 1-780-4740418 internationally
by email info@crownvideo.com
by phone 1-800-4715628 in North America
by mail Crown Video
PO Box 1108
Edmonton, Alberta,
T5J 2M1
Canada
A former Marketing Executive with 4 of Canada's largest companies and former poll topping elected Councillor for 13 years, Joan is President/Owner of Market Media International Corporation which provides with senior contract executive associates consulting services in strategic marketing and planning, public affairs, government relations and issues management.
Joan provides wellness and health promotion consulting services to corporations, governments, healthcare and other organizations and to individuals on the subject of prescription drug addictions. Her home page is on www.benzo.org.uk.
Market-Media International Corp.
4507 Cedarcrest Ave., North Vancouver, BC, V7R 3R2, Canada
Phone: (604) 987-6064 Fax: (604) 987-6063
Email Joan E. Gadsby
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