Sleepless and Tired Pilots Given Okay For Antidepressants on the Job!
In an unbelievable reversal of policies, the FAA is now allowing the already sleepless and tired pilots to take antidepressants on the job.
The new policy takes effect on Monday, April 5th.
The announcement in CBS News, from the Associated Press today, April 2nd, had to have been delayed a day to avoid the April Fools tradition that would have had no one believing it! Our stress filled world has been plagued by many catastrophic tragedies that have been linked to sleep deprivation.
Now, we can look forward to pilots, suffering from "mild to moderate depression," under the influence of prescription medications like Prozac, Zoloft,Celexa, Lexpro, and their generic equivalents.
The FAA officials said that "the old rule was based on outdated versions of antidepressants that could cause drowsiness and other side effects.
" The FAA Administrator, Randy Babbitt, now considers the side effects much less of a risk than they once were.
The new policy is meant to encourage the pilots to report their use instead of keeping their use a secret.
The threat of losing their licenses, until now, has kept the pilots from the disclosure.
Babbitt says, "We need to be able to change the culture and remove the stigma associated with depression.
Pilots should be able to get the medical treatment they need so they can safely perform their duties.
" The stipulation of the new policy is that they have to have been treated successfully "for a year without side effects that could pose a safety hazard in the cockpit.
" The critical question here is how these pilots can be judged to be free of those side effects.
All four of these drugs, and their generic equivalents, have the same dangerous side effects listed in all of their disclosures as well as on drugs.
com:
Who is going to determine whether these side effects have ever been experienced by the pilots? Who is to say that if they have not been experienced before they will not happen in the future? Our psychiatrists and our psychologists have done a great job of keeping the criminals off our streets and the pedophiles away from our children, haven't they? Many reports are written to affect the viewpoint desired by the responsible party, similar to our legal system today.
Every major criminal trial today is muddled by opposing proof from differing psychiatrists and psychologists.
Who determines the accuracy? Here there will be no judge and no jury.
Mr.
Babbitt and his competent staff at the FAA will be their judges.
And we will become the victims? How many of our lives will now be endangered because the FAA and Mr.
Babbitt feel that our need to "change the culture" is more important than the safety of millions of Americans flying the skies.
Sleep deprived pilots have been a problem in the past and they will continue to be a problem due to their grueling schedules.
Now we can look forward to our pilots being sleep deprived and "under the influence.
" How many new disasters and lost lives will be required before this "culture changing" and naive policy is replaced by the "common sense" approach of the past?
The new policy takes effect on Monday, April 5th.
The announcement in CBS News, from the Associated Press today, April 2nd, had to have been delayed a day to avoid the April Fools tradition that would have had no one believing it! Our stress filled world has been plagued by many catastrophic tragedies that have been linked to sleep deprivation.
Now, we can look forward to pilots, suffering from "mild to moderate depression," under the influence of prescription medications like Prozac, Zoloft,Celexa, Lexpro, and their generic equivalents.
The FAA officials said that "the old rule was based on outdated versions of antidepressants that could cause drowsiness and other side effects.
" The FAA Administrator, Randy Babbitt, now considers the side effects much less of a risk than they once were.
The new policy is meant to encourage the pilots to report their use instead of keeping their use a secret.
The threat of losing their licenses, until now, has kept the pilots from the disclosure.
Babbitt says, "We need to be able to change the culture and remove the stigma associated with depression.
Pilots should be able to get the medical treatment they need so they can safely perform their duties.
" The stipulation of the new policy is that they have to have been treated successfully "for a year without side effects that could pose a safety hazard in the cockpit.
" The critical question here is how these pilots can be judged to be free of those side effects.
All four of these drugs, and their generic equivalents, have the same dangerous side effects listed in all of their disclosures as well as on drugs.
com:
- Drowsiness, dizziness, tired feeling
- Mild nausea, stomach pain
- Fast or uneven heartbeats
- Overactive reflexes, hostile, aggressive impulses
- Mood changes
- Concentration problems, confusion, hallucinations
- Insomnia
- Suicidal thoughts
Who is going to determine whether these side effects have ever been experienced by the pilots? Who is to say that if they have not been experienced before they will not happen in the future? Our psychiatrists and our psychologists have done a great job of keeping the criminals off our streets and the pedophiles away from our children, haven't they? Many reports are written to affect the viewpoint desired by the responsible party, similar to our legal system today.
Every major criminal trial today is muddled by opposing proof from differing psychiatrists and psychologists.
Who determines the accuracy? Here there will be no judge and no jury.
Mr.
Babbitt and his competent staff at the FAA will be their judges.
And we will become the victims? How many of our lives will now be endangered because the FAA and Mr.
Babbitt feel that our need to "change the culture" is more important than the safety of millions of Americans flying the skies.
Sleep deprived pilots have been a problem in the past and they will continue to be a problem due to their grueling schedules.
Now we can look forward to our pilots being sleep deprived and "under the influence.
" How many new disasters and lost lives will be required before this "culture changing" and naive policy is replaced by the "common sense" approach of the past?
