Awareness around opioid abuse has increased dramatically since the early 21st century when the medical community was realizing over prescription was aiding opioid addiction at alarming rates. Now the numbers surrounding the opioid crisis are well known, and have become common headlines in both news and social media platforms.
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, more than 11.4 million Americans misuse prescribed opioids each year and 40% of all opioid overdose deaths involved a prescription opioid. There are multiple guidelines and articles available for healthcare providers to combat opioid addiction and still provide excellent pain management. If you are in charge of promoting a pain management clinic that is working hard to overcome the stigmas now associated with this service line, here are some helpful talking points to consider.
1. Communicate dependence prevention measures
There was an article published in the Ochsner Journal in Spring 2018 that outlines steps pain management clinics can take to appropriately monitor opioid use and early warning signs of potential abuse. The authors mention steps such as having the patients read and sign a contract so that they clearly understand the guidelines and accountability measures in place while they receive pain management treatments. They also recommend baseline urine drug tests and pill counts along the way for all patients to make it clear that preventative strategies are now a part of every patient treatment plan. If your hospital uses similar measures or has developed other prevention techniques, make sure that your community providers are aware of what prevention measures are in place and the important role they play in your treatment guidelines.
2. Promote non-opioid therapies
Pain management clinics offer more than prescription medications to combat pain levels. Make sure you can discuss the various treatment therapies in place and usage data to show your providers that non-opioid therapies play a large role in the overall strategy of the program. As new therapies arise, this becomes another talking point to deepen their confidence that your program is tackling pain management with a well-balanced approach.
3. Discuss collaboration with other disciplines
Effective pain management requires cross-specialty care from multiple providers to establish the best treatment plan for each individual patient. Referring providers need to know you have physical therapists, acupuncturists, neurologists, or other medical specialists that are providing services at your clinic. Individual patient success stories with a variety of providers will showcase the amount of collaboration that occurs for patients seeking relief from pain.
4. Use data if appropriate
If the program has been in existence for several years, use available data to showcase your commitment to responsible pain management practices. Statistics such as percentage of active patients using non-opioid therapies and average length of treatment for specific types of pain are important numbers that can increase a referring doctor’s confidence in your pain management program. In addition, if you follow the guidelines of larger organizations (like the CDC Guidelines for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain) use that as a talking point to show that program providers are thoughtful in their approach and well-connected to larger industry standards of care.
5. Educate yourself with current research and articles
Pain management has no shortage of current, well-researched articles and a simple Google search can provide plenty of resources. To get started, I recommend going to websites like the American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Academy of Pain Medicine, and the International Association for the Study of Pain to deepen your personal knowledge of what’s at stake in the field of pain management.