News
Latest - Mar 14, 2025
Painless Licensing + Spring TBE – Spring 2025 Newsletter
Hello, Painless: The Opioid Musical started as an idea to engage with students on the topic of opioid use after learning that almost 75% of high schoolers had access to unused opioids. Painless has been featured on The Today Show, seen by more than 2,400 students in Michigan, and streamed over 90,000 times. We are thrilled to share […]Nov 14, 2023
Naloxone Vending Machine Now Available in Michigan Medicine Adult Emergency Department
On Wednesday, October 11th, OPEN and Michigan Medicine officially launched access to a new Naloxone Vending Machine in the Adult Emergency Department waiting room. This vending machine is free to the public and allows community members access to Narcan, an intranasal form of naloxone. “Michigan Medicine has been wonderful to work with on this project,” […]Nov 9, 2023
New Michigan landscape map highlights counties affected hardest by opioid epidemic
ANN ARBOR—A new landscape map and analysis created by the University of Michigan show demographic information with a connection to opioid use disorder, examining data such as unemployment rates, annual income, opioid-related hospitalizations, and physical and mental health and well-being. To create the map, U-M’s Poverty Solutions and Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network (OPEN) used available […]Oct 6, 2023
Connecting Pharmacy Students and Communities for Safe Medication Storage and Disposal
At the beginning of each school year, the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy sends students, old and new, to community pharmacies to share safe storage and disposal materials. In their second year back since the start of COVID-19, the College of Pharmacy partnered with OPEN to help hand out more materials and reach more […]Sep 15, 2023
Read Our Fall 2023 Newsletter
Our Fall newsletter is here! Featuring new resources, information on the Fall 2023 Take Back Event, our exciting upcoming events and more! Read our Fall 2023 newsletter here. Subscribe to our newsletter here.Aug 16, 2023
OPEN overcomes barriers to identifying, caring for surgical patients at risk of substance use in Michigan Hospitals
Introduction Most Americans will have at least one surgery in their life and potentially be prescribed opioids for postsurgical pain management,1 and 6-10% of surgical patients will continue to use opioids months after a surgery.2 On average, 9.7 million Americans a year misuse opioids, and 19.7 million will be diagnosed with Substance Use Disorder (SUD).3 […]Jun 20, 2023
OPEN Team Attends 2023 Rx Summit
The 2023 Rx Summit In April 2023, the OPEN team attended the 2023 Rx and Illicit Drug Summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The Rx Summit is the largest national collaboration for professionals from local, state, and federal agencies, business, academia, treatment providers, and allied communities impacted by drug misuse. There is much offered at the Rx […]Jun 14, 2023
Read Our Summer 2023 Newsletter
Our Summer newsletter is here! Featuring new programs, information on the Take A.C.T.I.O.N. training courses, our newest OPEN spotlight and more! Read our Summer 2023 newsletter here. Subscribe to our newsletter here.May 11, 2023
OPEN Hits Milestone for 5,000 Naloxone Kits Distributed since 2020
OPEN and Michigan Emergency Department Improvement Collaborative (MEDIC) are excited to have reached over 5,000 naloxone kits distributed to at-risk patients this spring. Through our Emergency Department Naloxone Distribution Program, we aim to provide patients most vulnerable to future overdose this life-saving overdose reversal medication to take home with them. “Naloxone is the most effective […]Apr 24, 2023
How we Iterate: A Closer Look at OPEN’s Prescribing Recommendations
One of OPEN’s most important initiatives is our opioid Prescribing Recommendations. Earlier this year, we developed recommendations for a new set of pediatric procedures. In 2022, we added recommendations for additional pediatric procedures and updated many of the existing recommendations for adult surgical procedures. How do we actually go about making these changes? How did […]Mar 16, 2023
Read our Spring 2023 Newsletter
Our Spring newsletter is here! Featuring new featured programs, Spring 2023 Take Back Event information, our first open spotlight and more. Read our Spring 2023 newsletter here. Subscribe to our newsletter here.Mar 2, 2023
OPEN’s Educational Materials Hit 5,000 Downloads since 2020
In January 2023, OPEN hit a substantial milestone for downloads of our educational materials. OPEN has officially reached 5,000 downloads since 2020. Our educational materials are an important resource we provide to both patients and providers. “With these materials, everyone has the opportunity to learn about pain management. We’re their biggest advocate, so we are […]Feb 6, 2023