Candy vs Medication – Fall 2024 Newsletter
Hello ,
Medication safety is crucial all the time – especially during Halloween. Medication and candy can often look remarkably similar, posing a significant risk to children and people who may mistake one for the other. Can you tell which is which? Use our Candy or Medication Guide to test your identification skills and learn why it’s important to differentiate them to prevent accidental health risks.
Prevention can help turn the tide of the substance use epidemic. Creating safe and convenient opportunities for community members to dispose of unused and leftover medications is essential. That is why OPEN recommends participating in the upcoming Medication Take Back Day on October 26th and enhancing your education through our Safe Storage & Disposal Initiative.
To find the location to dispose of your unused medications or to host a future event, please visit the link below:
Stay safe this Halloween and share these resources with your community to help prevent health risks and keep the festivities enjoyable for everyone:
Sincerely,
Chad Brummett, MD
OPEN Executive Clinical Director
UPDATES + NEWS STORIES
UPDATED webpages launched on OPEN’s website.
OPEN is proud to announce that major improvements were made to key initiative pages on our website:
OPEN Develops Youth Board to Create Resources for Teen Opioid Use Education
At the end of August 2024, OPEN unveiled a brand new initiative: OPEN Teen. This page was created after many months of collaboration with youth leaders, analyzing and dissecting research to compile resources and information designed by teens and catered to teens.
Michigan Society of Anesthesiologists applaud OPEN’s anesthesiologists…
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Ahead of National Opioid Awareness Day on Sept. 21, the Michigan Society of Anesthesiologists is applauding the Overdose Prevention Engagement Network (OPEN) for their great work to share new evidence-based Opioid Prescribing Recommendations with clinicians across the state. Anesthesiologists with OPEN are leading the way to share innovative methods to better treat pain, reduce the use of opioids and keep patients safe.
OPEN Achieves 10,000 Download Milestone for Educational Resources
On July 1st, 2024, OPEN officially reached the milestone of 10,000 downloads for our educational resources. OPEN’s materials cover a variety of topics from pain management techniques to naloxone facts to safe use supplies. OPEN has been tracking total downloads since 2020 and previously hit the 5,000 download milestone in January of 2023.
RESOURCES
Alcohol Use Disorder
This guide goes over Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) and how to treat it.
Neurobiology of Addiction
This guide explains how addiction alters the brain and how to treat it through a multidisciplinary approach.
Pediatric Surgical Pain Management Toolkit
OPEN has created toolkits for Healthcare Professionals and families to guide patients through postoperative pain management.
Risky Substance Use in Surgery
This guide will explain how risky substance use impacts patients having surgery and best practices for the identification and coordination of care for those with risky use.
PROGRAMS + SERVICES
Same-Day Consultation Service
Our experts in addiction medicine provide guidance for managing patients who have Substance Use Disorders (SUD) or complex pain. We also support technical assistance for MOUD treatment implementation within practices.
Printed Pediatric Materials for Pain Management
OPEN offers free printed materials shipped directly to your organization for pediatric best practices in pain management. These materials can help patients, families and providers make a plan for pain before the child’s surgery and manage acute pain following their operation.
Educational Material Co-Branding
OPEN partners with organizations to share materials and patient education information. We will add your organization’s logo alongside ours to co-brand materials, free of charge. Materials will be sent as a PDF through a DropBox link and be ready for printing.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Advancing Addiction Care in Michigan Conference
October 19, 2024
@ 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Location:
Dining Hall of North Campus Research Complex (NCRC) Building 18
2800 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
5.0 CME Credits Available
This conference aims to bring together professionals, researchers, and individuals interested in addiction care to discuss the latest advancements in the field. Through interactive sessions, expert panels, and engaging presentations, we will explore innovative approaches, share best practices, and address challenges in addiction care.
Bringing Our Patients COMFORT: Implementation of a New Clinical Practice Guideline for Pain Management after Childbirth
November 15, 2024
@ 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
1.0 CE Credit Available
CME and MCBAP
1.0 CE Credit Pending
Social Work
Presenter:
Alex Peahl, MD, MSc
Childbirth, whether vaginal or via cesarean section, can come with significant pain that requires effective management to ensure patient well-being and recovery. The way we address postpartum pain and the strategies we use, particularly regarding opioid prescriptions, have substantial implications for both immediate and long-term health outcomes. This webinar is designed to guide healthcare providers through the latest evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for pain management after childbirth, which promote excellent pain control, reduce harmful opioid prescribing, and more equitable, patient-centered care.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Epidemiology of opioid prescribing after discharge from surgical procedures among adults
- JAMA Network Open, 6/3/2024
- In this cross-sectional study of the distribution of postoperative opioid prescribing in the United States, a small number of common procedures accounted for a large proportion of MMEs dispensed after surgery. These findings suggest that the optimal design and targeting of surgical opioid stewardship initiatives in adults undergoing surgery should focus on the procedures that account for the most opioids dispensed following surgery over the life span, such as childbirth and orthopedic procedures.
Regional variation in financial hardship among US veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Health Affairs Scholar, 6/5/2024
- In a nationwide, regionally stratified sample of VHA-enrolled veterans, we examined whether the prevalence of financial hardship during the pandemic varied by US Census region. We found veterans in the South, compared with those in other census regions, reported higher rates of severe-to-extreme financial strain, using up all or most of their savings, being unable to pay for necessities, being contacted by collections, and changing their employment due to the kind of work they could perform.
- Health Affairs Scholar, 6/12/2024
- Access to care for persons with chronic noncancer pain appears to be the most restricted among those taking prescription opioids, although patients taking cannabis may also encounter reduced access.
Association Between Cost-Sharing and Buprenorphine Prescription Abandonment
- Journal of General Internal Medicine, 6/18/2024
- Among commercially insured and Medicare patients, buprenorphine prescription abandonment is rare and only minimally associated with cost-sharing. Findings suggest that the elimination of buprenorphine cost-sharing should only be one component of a larger, multi-faceted campaign to increase buprenorphine dispensing.
- Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, 6/26/2024
- Despite mixed evidence regarding whether regional anesthesia offers superior perioperative outcomes compared to general anesthesia, it is favored for its intraoperative advantages, reduced postoperative pain, lower opioid requirements, fewer side effects, and high patient satisfaction, though patient values and clinical experience should guide anesthetic choices.
- BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 6/29/2024
- Findings from this clinical trial will contribute to a greater knowledge of CBD’s analgesic potential and guide further research. Given the relative availability of CBD, our findings will help elucidate the potential of an accessible option for helping to manage chronic pain among Veterans.
- JAMA Network Open, 7/1/2024
- This randomized clinical trial found decreases in depression and anxiety symptoms across all DMHIs and minimal evidence that specific applications were better than others. The findings suggest that DMHIs may provide support for patients during waiting list-related delays in care.
Pediatric Surgical Opioid Prescribing by Procedure
- Pediatrics, 7/1/2024
- Pediatric surgical opioid prescribing is concentrated among a small number of procedures. Targeting these procedures in opioid stewardship initiatives could help minimize the risks of opioid prescribing while maintaining effective postoperative pain control.
Beyond the block: evaluation of epidurals on length of stay
- Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, 7/8/2024
- Regardless of the method applied to examine how well patients recover after surgery, it is clear that our understanding of the role of more advanced techniques such as epidurals deserves our attention.
Association Between Cost Sharing and Naloxone Prescription Dispensing
- JAMA, 7/9/2024
- The elimination of cost-sharing might be associated with increased naloxone dispensing to commercially insured and Medicare patients.
- Anesthesiology, 8/1/2024
- Future research should incorporate comprehensive psychologic and pain assessment tools, broaden participant demographics, and utilize definitions of chronic postsurgical pain consistent with emerging consensus from pain research consortiums.
Trends in Opioid Prescribing and New Persistent Opioid Use After Surgery in the United States
- Annals of Surgery, 8/1/2024
- Both opioid prescription size after surgery and new persistent opioid use decreased over the last decade, suggesting that opioid stewardship practices had favorable effects on the risk of long-term opioid use.
- The Journal of Hand Surgery, 8/12/2024
- Utilization of CTS-6 and EDS varied based on years in practice. This difference may reflect changing guidelines, the growing evidence regarding clinical assessment tools, and the emergence of other diagnostic modalities.
Financial hardship after COVID-19 infection among US Veterans: a national prospective cohort study
- BMC Health Services Research, 8/19/2024
- Health-related financial hardships such as taking less medication due to cost and severe-to-extreme health-related financial strain were more common among Veterans with a history of COVID-19 than among matched comparators. Strategies are needed to address health-related financial hardship after COVID-19.
- American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM, 8/24/2024
- In this cluster analysis, we found 4 distinct opioid prescription fill patterns; those that were more frequent (consistent) and more proximal to childbirth (late prenatal) had the strongest associations with persistent opioid fills postpartum, suggesting the importance of both prescribing frequency and timing. These associations were stronger than other known risk factors for persistent opioid fills, including cesarean delivery, prenatal emergency department visits, and receipt of a peripartum opioid prescription. Importantly, our study found that birthing people who had opioid prescription fills near the time of childbirth (late prenatal) had notably higher odds of belonging to the group with the highest rate of opioid fills postpartum (consistent) than those who had opioid fills further away from childbirth (early prenatal).
- Annals of Surgery, 8/26/2024
- Frailty status is associated with increased opioid consumption after common operations. Future prescribing guidelines and outcomes analyses should consider this marker when reviewing opioid consumption data and related adverse outcomes.
Support for Expanding Access to Cannabis Among Physicians and Adults With Chronic Pain
- JAMA Network Open, 9/3/2024
- This survey study reports opinions of patients with chronic pain and physicians who treat chronic pain on policies regarding access to cannabis for chronic pain management.
- Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, 9/11/2024
- Although some clinicians and researchers approach persistent postoperative opioid use (PPOU) and chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) as conditions with significant overlap, they appear to have more different than common risk factors, with prior substance use, mental health disorders, and type of surgery being primary for PPOU, while type of surgery, psychological disorders, and pain are significant for CPSP. Current literature often relies on retrospective insurance claim data, underscoring the need for prospective research with patient-reported outcomes to advance understanding and improve clinical management of PPOU and CPSP.
Trends in Female Physicians Entering High-Compensation Specialties, 2008 to 2022
- JAMA, 9/30/2024
- This study examines US trends in the proportion of female applicants and matriculants to residency programs for high-compensation surgical and nonsurgical pipeline specialties during 2008-2022.