Audrey asked about the safety of Flonase spray for singers, and Cindy asked
"is it really your place (or our place), to educate others about specific
medications if we are not physicians, pharmacists or chemists?"
I understand Cindy's point, but there's a difference between asking a
question and challenging a physician's capability, and there's also a
difference between commenting on the possible effect of a medication to a
singer and misrepresenting ourselves as medical practitioners.
As singers and other vocal professionals, we *must* ask questions about
medications, for ourselves and our students. We must seek a respectful
relationship with our medical colleagues (as we have shown time and again on
this list) where we can request information about health and heath care,
because it can directly affect the singer's instrument in both body and
voice. I don't expect my doctors to know or keep up on every aspect of the
health field as it might affect singers, but it's part of *my* job to ask
questions as Audrey did, to search for resources like
http://www.ncvs.org/vocol/rx.html that will tell me what reactions and
affects are possible [Flonase: "Throat irritation and dryness, cough,
hoarseness and voice changes are all possible adverse reactions."] and to
read articles written by doctors and scientists with a special interest in
singers, such as can be found in the Journal of Singing. When I present
reasonable questions and inquiries, I have found most physicians quite
willing to listen to my questions, and to consult a reference book or
colleague when necessary.
In my life as a voice teacher, I ask students to keep me apprised of their
health and medication issues, and I advise them to speak with their doctor
immediately if they have difficulties singing on a medication or treatment.
"Remind them you're a professional user of the voice," I tell them, "and
find out your options." If I know of possible problems with a drug, I'll
tell singers what to watch out for, prefaced by "I'm not a medical doctor,
nor do I play one on TV.";-). In cases where I've heard a change in a
student's voice that could be prescription-related, I've asked them to
consider inquiring about alternative medications. I've also had the job on a
few occasions to remind a singer that sometimes there's a choice to be made:
while a medication may affect their instrument or pose a risk to it, this
medication may be necessary to treat a serious problem. At that point the
issue becomes "Which is more important, your health or your voice?"
If we remain informed and collegial, there is no reason that conflict should
ensue, and the singer's best interests are kept at the forefront.
_Dr. Yvonne Dechance
Email: webmaster@n..., Homepage: http://scaredofthat.com/yworld
Diction Domain: http://over.to/dictiondomain
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