 A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found that opioid prescribing remains high and varies widely by specialty. A total of 209.5 million opioid prescriptions were dispensed in the United States from July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017. The most common opioid prescribers were family medicine, internal medicine, nurse practitioners, physician assistant, pain medicine and dentist. This study further highlights the need for prescriber education.
The Indiana Rural Opioid Consortium (InROC) has created a six module training course for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD), which includes modules on the neuroscience of OUD, the epidemiology of OUD, and more. The series consists of six 20-to-30 minute modules each with continuing education units for Advance Practice Nurses. All courses are offered at no cost.
In collaboration with ASTHO, several state and territorial health officials developed a resource on opioid prevention and treatment best practices. This report, developed as part of the 2017-18 President’s Challenge, is the culmination of a year-long multidisciplinary committee. The document focuses on four areas: prevention, prescriber guidelines, naloxone awareness and education, and treatment and recovery. Best practices include prescription take back events, prescriber education, naloxone access for families and communities and more.
 The Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health recently released an issue brief on Indiana drug overdose fatality review (OFR) teams. Such teams consist of multiagency, interdisciplinary teams that assess whether an overdose death could have been prevented. The ultimate goal of OFRs is to use the insights gained from such reviews to improve statewide policies, procedures, and health outcomes. The brief explains in detail the goals, function and purpose of OFRs.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (OMH) recently announced a $2 million expansion of its Empowered Communities for a Healthier Nation Initiative to help communities respond to the opioid epidemic. This year, OMH added awards for organizations in six communities to help racial and ethnic minority and disadvantaged populations that are disproportionately affected by the opioid epidemic. Purdue University is one of the six recipients and received an award of $350,000.
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