Ten Nova Scotia doctors are being investigated for irregularities in their prescribing practices for highly addictive opioids, as a monitoring system documents over 5,000 patients receiving dosages higher than recommended levels. Mike Flynn, the director of the monitoring program, said complaints are based both on reports from the public and a "risk scoring report" from a database that monitors doctors' prescribing practices. Health officials and police have called opioid abuse an "epidemic" in Nova Scotia. What does fentanyl do to your brain?1:47Strang said Nova Scotia may consider similar measures, but will await the completion of national guidelines for prescribing opioids early in the new year. Concerns about doctors' prescribing habits came into the public eye earlier this year when a doctor in Bridgewater, N.S., was charged with drug trafficking.

Source: CBC News November 25, 2016 02:17 UTC