In the sixth episode of The Saving Dose, Dr. John Hsu and William Pedranti are joined by Kevin James, a chronic pain patient, advocate, and member of Chronic Pain Australia, speaking from Brisbane, Queensland.

Kevin has lived with chronic pain for years. He has navigated the Australian healthcare system, fought for access to treatment, and watched the fear campaign around opioid prescribing export itself from the United States to the rest of the world. He is not speaking as a physician or a policy expert. He is speaking as someone who has sat on the other side of the desk and has been told his pain was not real, or was manageable without medication, or was something psychological exercises could fix.

This episode covers what chronic pain actually looks like from the inside, why global overcorrection on opioid prescribing is leaving legitimate pain patients without treatment, what holistic pain management actually means when it is done correctly, and why Kevin's message to every prescriber, policymaker, and clinic operator comes down to one sentence: holistic care is the biscuit.

In this episode:

What it is like to be a chronic pain patient navigating a healthcare system that has been reshaped by fear rather than evidence, and why access to adequate pain treatment has become harder even for patients with documented, diagnosed conditions.

Why the opioid fear campaign that originated in the United States has spread globally, what it is doing to pain management practices in Australia, and why Kevin believes America's prescribing overcorrection is being imported by countries that did not need it.

The difference between opioid dependency and opioid use disorder from a patient's perspective, and why conflating the two has caused legitimate pain patients to be treated as addicts when they are not.

What holistic pain management actually requires: not just psychological exercises and pain reprocessing therapy, but medication, individual treatment, and a care plan built around the whole person rather than a protocol designed to reduce prescribing liability.

Why imaging technology misses the majority of pain causes at the microscopic level, and what happens when clinicians assume that what the scan cannot find must be psychological.

John's take on post-surgical pain management in America: what it means when hospitals advocate for Tylenol-only pain protocols after total knee replacement, and why that trend concerns him as a practicing anesthesiologist.

The patient advocacy landscape in Australia: what Chronic Pain Australia is doing on the ground with peer support groups and at the federal government level in Canberra to have chronic pain recognized and funded as a chronic disease in its own right.

What Kevin would say to every prescriber, policymaker, and clinic operator if he had one sentence: treat the individual, treat the whole person, and do not assume that because you cannot find a physical cause the pain is not real.

About the Hosts

John Hsu, MD is the Founder and CEO of iPill and a practicing anesthesiologist with 25 years in pain management and addiction medicine. He has taken multiple products through FDA approval and commercial launch. Connect with John: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-hsu-md-300a8b2a/

William Pedranti is the COO of iPill, a Georgetown Law graduate, and co-founder of PENG Life Science Ventures. He has taken a biotech company from founding through FDA approval, commercial launch, and exit. Connect with William: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williampedranti/

About the Guest

Kevin James is a chronic pain patient and patient advocate based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. He is a member of Chronic Pain Australia, the only organization in Australia providing face-to-face peer support groups for people living with chronic pain, and is involved in advocacy efforts at the federal government level to have chronic pain recognized and funded as a standalone chronic disease. He speaks in a personal capacity.

Website: thesavingdose.com

This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before making any treatment decisions.

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