Restrictions on Morphine Administration: A Comparative Study on Thailand, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States

Abstract

Morphine, an opioid analgesic (a derivative from opium), is widely used medically. The World Health Organisation’s Pain Relief Ladder has recommended morphine administration for moderate or severe pain. The aim of this research is to study the restrictions on medically administered morphine. The research is based on academic materials including books, articles, and journals, as well as legal and other related materials in Thai and other languages in order to conduct a comparative study on the laws governing morphine administration in Thailand, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The study shows that morphine restriction measures, implemented independently by each health facility, are varied. This situation causes undue difficulty for patients in need of constant and continuous use of morphine, i.e. patients with chronic pain or terminal patients under palliative care to get access to morphine. Comparing with morphine restriction regimes in aforementioned countries, the study finds out that restriction on morphine, similar to Thailand’s, is also implemented but there is exemption for patients in need of constant and continuous use of morphine, i.e. patients with chronic condition or terminal patients under palliative care.

            According to the result, a health facility should implement morphine restriction regime in accordance with patient’s clinical condition, in other words, in the case of a patient in need of constant and continuous use of morphine, i.e. a patients with chronic condition or a terminal patient under palliative care should receive exemption from restriction which would allow proper morphine administration, in accordance to the clinical condition.