Registration Info

This is a 2-day meeting and will provide 12 CE/CME credits.

Conference Registration Fee

Practicing Healthcare Professionals: $199

Non-Clinicians / Medical Office Support Staff / Industry Participants

Non-clinicians--including, but not limited to, office managers, billing specialists, receptionists, and administrative staff--may attend PAINWeekEnd on a space-available basis when accompanied by a clinician and will be put on a wait list. These non-clinicians must still pre-register. Participation in industry sponsored meal programs, however, is strictly limited to practicing licensed healthcare providers. Please make necessary arrangements for meals for office support staff. In order to maintain the professional nature of the conference, guests, spouses, friends, and/or family members who are not currently employed in the medical field may not attend PAINWeekEnd.

Venue

Unfortunately, we do not have discounts available on hotel rooms. Please contact the hotel directly should you require accommodations.

Hyatt Centric French Quarter
800 Iberville St.
New Orleans, LA 70112

Discounted valet parking is $15. When parking, mention that you are with the PAINWeekEnd meeting.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

  • Registration and Exhibits

    Coffe will be served.

  • Pain Pathways Made Simple

    In order to successfully clinically manage pain, it is essential to begin with an understanding of the underlying mechanisms responsible for its generation. A skillful approach based upon better knowledge concerning the anatomical structures, pathways, and events that result in pain is more likely to lead to effective clinical management of pain. The discussion will include an overview of medication classes typically considered for pain and the pathways they affect.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-047-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*

    Breakfast will be served.

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Thug Drugs

    Throughout the course of history, mankind has experienced heightened effects from natural sources, and even delved into creating or modifying substances to the same accord. In our society we have a very "objective" classification of materials based on generally accepted medical use and propensity to become habit forming. However, as one can recall with ethyl alcohol (such as beer, wine, and hard liquor), a substance may never actually chemically change, yet can move across legal classifications. How does that happen? Well, join our discussion to learn how numerous illicit substances have similar, if not the same, mechanisms of action as legal prescription medications readily available today. One may even walk away with a few pointers from "street chemists" that are not easily available in any of our professional textbooks.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-395-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.8

  • Get Your Specimens in Order: The Importance of Individualized Test Orders and Timely Test Utilization

    The government has ramped up its efforts in 2018 to connect claims of inappropriate opioid prescribing to financial gain, including gain from urine drug testing. While most physicians do not have a financial interest in a clinical laboratory, the government's decision to highlight an opioid prescriber's failure to timely utilize drug test results is significant, and suggests the government is looking at other factors tied to medical decision making. Thus, prescribers should pay attention to licensing board, payer, and professional society guidance on ordering drug tests and how to use drug test results when treatment involves opioid prescribing. Attendees will learn how to identify the core elements of medical necessity and document an individualized testing plan for each patient. This course will cover critical areas of medical record documentation, including the decision to drug test, when and how often; determining which drugs to test and why; and how to coordinate timely review and use of drug test results in connection with the patient's plan of care. Attendees will gain additional insight into these issues through position papers, published late 2017 and early 2018, by the American Academy of Pain Medicine and the American Association for Clinical Chemistry. The overall goal of the course is to assist prescribers in their quest to provide quality pain care to their patients and to document their rationale for drug testing and their treatment decisions.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-039-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Faculty Q&A

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*

    Lunch will be served.

  • Clinical Pearls: Unraveling the Secrets of Imaging Studies

    Diagnostic testing is an integral component for the differential diagnosis. In routine clinical practice there has been a tendency for clinical examinations to become more cursory, largely influenced by increasing demands of time and patient expectations of technological advances. The end result may arguably lead to an overreliance on technology for basic clinical diagnosis. The purpose of this session is 2-fold. It is meant to provide a review and, for some, an introduction to basic structural and functional studies used for the diagnosis of pain related problems. Attention will also be given to the limitations of such studies and the importance of establishing clinical relevance to their findings. Factors that adversely affect clinical management potentially resulting in failed treatment will be discussed as well as best practices when utilizing such studies to help enhance clinical outcomes for treatment.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-046-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*

    Refreshments will be served.

  • Pain Management at Ground Zero

    West Virginia continues to lead the nation, and world, in drug overdoses, which makes one ponder what is being done at the "ground zero" of the opioid epidemic to save and improve lives. Where better than where it's worst should some of the possible solutions come from? In 2016, an interprofessional panel of experts in pain management--ranging from medicine, osteopathy, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry; public health; the state PDMP; and representatives from insurance providers--was put together with aims of doing just that. The West Virginia Safe & Effective Management of Pain (SEMP) Guidelines (www.sempguidelines.org) were developed to facilitate the shift of the best practices in pain management becoming the new standard of care. The SEMP Guidelines include 2 main components including the risk reduction strategy and the clinical treatment algorithms. Pain management algorithms are not available anywhere else in the entire world! So we would like to welcome you to "the West Virginia Way" and see just how the "Wild and Wonderful" state of West Virginia is approaching the opioid epidemic from a true ground zero. After all, if it works where it's worst, how could it not help your state or your practice?

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-394-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.7

  • Embrace Changes and Mitigate Legal Risks Associated with Opioid Prescribing and the Issue of Overdose: An Updated Blueprint for the Frontline Pain Practitioner and Medical Directors

    Overdose--a small word that packs a major punch, and a big reason for many recent legal regulatory changes in controlled substance prescribing and pain management. Too many physicians and allied healthcare practitioners are caught unawares by the legal issues surrounding overdose events, fatal and nonfatal. Often, prescribers are the last to learn about an overdose event and, worse yet, fail to take action once notified. Through a series of case examples, attendees will learn how to develop and implement overdose event policies and protocols. Attendees will receive copies of sample policies and protocols and learn how to tailor them to their respective practices and state licensing board framework. Professional licensing board and criminal cases involving overdose events do not usually end well for the prescriber, but there is much the prescriber can do proactively to signal his/her intent to get things right. While prescribers cannot control what their patients do once they leave the medical office, they are responsible for establishing a safe framework for opioid prescribing, including a proper response when something goes wrong.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-045-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

Sunday, October 7, 2018

  • Registration and Exhibits

    Coffe will be served.

  • Falling Down the Rabbit Hole: A Primer for Chronic Pain Management and Substance Abuse Disorders

    The field of pain management has undergone a circuitous adventure, much like a rabbit hole. As the economic, mental health, and medical consequences of prescribing opioid medications have mounted, the prevailing logic regarding the usefulness of prescribing opioids for chronic pain has shifted. The widespread dissemination of opiates and the lax safety measures placed on their storage has also led to an increase in nonmedical use. Given the high level of comorbidity between opioid use disorders and chronic pain, providers' decisions about how to address treatment with patients who may have or who have been diagnosed with substance use disorders are often complex. The new CDC guidelines will require providers to assess for risk of overdose or development of a substance use disorder, and to be keenly aware of their patients' pain levels and pain management strategies when working as part of a system where opioid medications may be prescribed. Participants will learn how patient and provider education programs and communication interventions may improve outcomes in pain management. Participants will also learn how to select candidates for opioid trials, assess for risk, and initiate opioid therapy, but only after exploring nonopioid and nonpharmacological strategies.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-038-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*

    Breakfast will be served.

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Walking the Line: Opioid Dose De-escalation

    The shift away from opioid use in medication management for chronic pain has changed the dynamic of opioid prescribing in many ways. Now, more than ever, prescribers are under the microscope regarding selection of opioids and doses as well as clinical documentation and appropriate action based on findings during the patient visit. Risks of opioids outweighing the benefits due to lack of effect, adverse effects, or aberrant behavior are just some of the possible justifications when considering opioid tapering. There are other instances when there is outright dangerous or illegal behavior that justifies discontinuation of opioids. This lecture will review different patient situations and discuss when to taper or discontinue opioids and how to implement the change in opioid therapy.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-212-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • The Other Opioid Crisis: Fentanyl and Heroin

    There is a significant amount of media, political, and public attention paid to the opioid crisis/opioid epidemic in the United States. With the seemingly ever-increasing number of opioid related overdoses and fatalities, there has been a feverish push by stakeholders to diminish the amount of opioids prescribed in order to help stem these worrisome trends. Unfortunately, there may be a lack of focus regarding the true definition and characterization of the opioid epidemic. There may also be a rush to judgment about the role of appropriately prescribed opioid analgesics in the addiction crisis we face today. This presentation will discuss the roles and statistics of both prescription and illicit opioids--namely fentanyl and heroin--in today's "opioid overdose epidemic" with the intention of clarifying important differences and similarities between these competing epidemics including concerns and clinical considerations specific to each of them. Additionally, this program will examine and identify how these medications and drugs share potentially tragic adverse effect profiles in many cases. However, it is important for clinicians to make sure that appropriate chronic pain patients who may be candidates for opioid analgesic therapy aren't penalized, and still get the treatment they deserve.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-055-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Faculty Q&A

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*

    Lunch will be served.

  • The Gentle Art of Saying No: How to Establish Appropriate Boundaries With Chronic Pain Patients

    Effective pain management has been deemed a human right, but some chronic pain patients perceive that to mean they are entitled to opioid analgesics for prolonged pain control. In response to these expectations, providers may feel pressured to say "Yes" and continue prescribing opioids, thereby reinforcing the patient's beliefs and reliance on medication. This has contributed to a dramatic rise in opioid analgesic misuse and deaths from prescription drug overdose. In fact, the CDC has identified opioid misuse as a "public health epidemic" and released new guidelines in March 2016. While a collaborative relationship is optimal for pain management, there may be times when a practitioner saying "No" is the best treatment. Many providers feel uncomfortable setting boundaries; however, boundary setting is important work because rights as a provider are also important. When reasonable limits are placed on a patient and the patient continues to step beyond those limits, it is imperative that providers maintain boundaries and be consistent in their message. Participants will learn about the gentle art of saying "No" and how to use a decision tree when making pain management decisions. Sample cases will be presented along with recommended treatment strategies.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-054-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.0

  • Break & Exhibits

  • Nonopioid Analgesics: Antidepressants, Adjuvant Therapies, and Muscle Relaxants

    Nonopioid analgesics are oftentimes considered first-line therapy for most chronic pain syndromes. A strong understanding of these agents' mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, and toxicity profiles is paramount for today's pain practitioner. This course will provide an in-depth look at each of the agents within these drug classes, their potential role in pain management, and available data supporting their use. Additionally, clinically relevant monitoring pearls will be discussed.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-042-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 1.0

  • The Regulatory Agency Will See You Now

    Despite high prevalence and seemingly continuous attention, the clinical challenges associated with assessing, treating, and managing patients with chronic pain continue to persist. Many different forces are at play and responsible for this frequently frustrating situation and, as is often the case, the person with the most at risk is the patient with chronic pain. There is no deficit of opinions for possible solutions to this problem. In fact, the number of potential solutions seems to increase each year, all with the intent of helping pain care be more safe and effective, and most trying to stem the negative consequences of abuse, misuse, and diversion of prescription pain medications. Clinicians have had to juggle these good intentions along with the fear of regulatory scrutiny. This course will present and detail the variety of current regulatory forces that need to be considered in clinical practice; how they can potentially impact clinical decisions regarding chronic pain; and how they can be negotiated. A number of regulatory agencies are now "sitting at the pain management table" for the foreseeable future and it is critical to navigate the waters without sacrificing that most important stakeholder: the patient.

    • UAN: 0530-0000-18-056-L01-P
    • AANP Rx Hours: 0.4

SPONSORED PROGRAMS

To accompany and enrich your experience at the PAINWeekEnd conference, be sure to attend one or more of the sponsored programs, which are scheduled during breakfast, lunch, and afternoon "Brain Food" time slots in the schedule. There is NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE to attend these program sessions!

More information >>

Schedule

Click on the day of the conference to see course descriptions, UAN numbers, and AANP pharmacology credits.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

Schedule (subject to change)

7:00a - 7:30a - Registration and Exhibits
Coffee will be served. 

7:30a - 8:30a - Pain Pathways Made Simple

UAN 0530-0000-18-047-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

In order to successfully clinically manage pain, it is essential to begin with an understanding of the underlying mechanisms responsible for its generation. A skillful approach based upon better knowledge concerning the anatomical structures, pathways, and events that result in pain is more likely to lead to effective clinical management of pain. The discussion will include an overview of medication classes typically considered for pain and the pathways they affect.

David M. Glick, DC, DAAPM, CPE, FASPE

8:30a - 9:30a - Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*
Breakfast will be served.
Sponsored by Teva Pharmaceutical, Christina Treppendahl, FNP-BC, AQH

9:30a - 9:40a - Break & Exhibits

9:40a - 10:40a - Thug Drugs

UAN 0530-0000-18-395-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.8

Course Description

Throughout the course of history, mankind has experienced heightened effects from natural sources, and even delved into creating or modifying substances to the same accord. In our society we have a very "objective" classification of materials based on generally accepted medical use and propensity to become habit forming. However, as one can recall with ethyl alcohol (such as beer, wine, and hard liquor), a substance may never actually chemically change, yet can move across legal classifications. How does that happen? Well, join our discussion to learn how numerous illicit substances have similar, if not the same, mechanisms of action as legal prescription medications readily available today. One may even walk away with a few pointers from "street chemists" that are not easily available in any of our professional textbooks.

Mark Garofoli, PharmD, MBA, BCGP, CPE

10:40a - 11:40a - Get Your Specimens in Order: The Importance of Individualized Test Orders and Timely Test Utilization

UAN 0530-0000-18-039-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

The government has ramped up its efforts in 2018 to connect claims of inappropriate opioid prescribing to financial gain, including gain from urine drug testing. While most physicians do not have a financial interest in a clinical laboratory, the government's decision to highlight an opioid prescriber's failure to timely utilize drug test results is significant, and suggests the government is looking at other factors tied to medical decision making. Thus, prescribers should pay attention to licensing board, payer, and professional society guidance on ordering drug tests and how to use drug test results when treatment involves opioid prescribing. Attendees will learn how to identify the core elements of medical necessity and document an individualized testing plan for each patient. This course will cover critical areas of medical record documentation, including the decision to drug test, when and how often; determining which drugs to test and why; and how to coordinate timely review and use of drug test results in connection with the patient's plan of care. Attendees will gain additional insight into these issues through position papers, published late 2017 and early 2018, by the American Academy of Pain Medicine and the American Association for Clinical Chemistry. The overall goal of the course is to assist prescribers in their quest to provide quality pain care to their patients and to document their rationale for drug testing and their treatment decisions.

Jennifer Bolen, JD

11:40a - 12:00p - Faculty Q&A

12:00p - 12:10p - Break & Exhibits

12:10p - 1:10p - Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*
Lunch will be served.
Sponsored by Salix Pharmaceuticals, Gerald Sacks, MD

1:10p - 2:00p - Clinical Pearls: Unraveling the Secrets of Imaging Studies

UAN 0530-0000-18-046-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

Diagnostic testing is an integral component for the differential diagnosis. In routine clinical practice there has been a tendency for clinical examinations to become more cursory, largely influenced by increasing demands of time and patient expectations of technological advances. The end result may arguably lead to an overreliance on technology for basic clinical diagnosis. The purpose of this session is 2-fold. It is meant to provide a review and, for some, an introduction to basic structural and functional studies used for the diagnosis of pain related problems. Attention will also be given to the limitations of such studies and the importance of establishing clinical relevance to their findings. Factors that adversely affect clinical management potentially resulting in failed treatment will be discussed as well as best practices when utilizing such studies to help enhance clinical outcomes for treatment.

David M. Glick, DC, DAAPM, CPE, FASPE

2:00p - 2:10p - Break & Exhibits

2:10p - 3:00p - Product, Disease Awareness, Medical Information Program*
Refreshments will be served.

3:00p - 3:50p - Pain Management at Ground Zero

UAN 0530-0000-18-394-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.7

Course Description

West Virginia continues to lead the nation, and world, in drug overdoses, which makes one ponder what is being done at the "ground zero" of the opioid epidemic to save and improve lives. Where better than where it's worst should some of the possible solutions come from? In 2016, an interprofessional panel of experts in pain management--ranging from medicine, osteopathy, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry; public health; the state PDMP; and representatives from insurance providers--was put together with aims of doing just that. The West Virginia Safe & Effective Management of Pain (SEMP) Guidelines (www.sempguidelines.org) were developed to facilitate the shift of the best practices in pain management becoming the new standard of care. The SEMP Guidelines include 2 main components including the risk reduction strategy and the clinical treatment algorithms. Pain management algorithms are not available anywhere else in the entire world! So we would like to welcome you to "the West Virginia Way" and see just how the "Wild and Wonderful" state of West Virginia is approaching the opioid epidemic from a true ground zero. After all, if it works where it's worst, how could it not help your state or your practice?

Mark Garofoli, PharmD, MBA, BCGP, CPE

3:50p - 4:40p - Embrace Changes and Mitigate Legal Risks Associated with Opioid Prescribing and the Issue of Overdose: An Updated Blueprint for the Frontline Pain Practitioner and Medical Directors

UAN 0530-0000-18-045-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

Overdose--a small word that packs a major punch, and a big reason for many recent legal regulatory changes in controlled substance prescribing and pain management. Too many physicians and allied healthcare practitioners are caught unawares by the legal issues surrounding overdose events, fatal and nonfatal. Often, prescribers are the last to learn about an overdose event and, worse yet, fail to take action once notified. Through a series of case examples, attendees will learn how to develop and implement overdose event policies and protocols. Attendees will receive copies of sample policies and protocols and learn how to tailor them to their respective practices and state licensing board framework. Professional licensing board and criminal cases involving overdose events do not usually end well for the prescriber, but there is much the prescriber can do proactively to signal his/her intent to get things right. While prescribers cannot control what their patients do once they leave the medical office, they are responsible for establishing a safe framework for opioid prescribing, including a proper response when something goes wrong.

Jennifer Bolen, JD

 

*Not certified for credit.

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Schedule (subject to change)

8:00a - 8:30a - Registration and Exhibits
Coffee will be served. 

8:30a - 9:30a - Falling Down the Rabbit Hole: A Primer for Chronic Pain Management and Substance Abuse Disorders

UAN 0530-0000-18-038-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

The field of pain management has undergone a circuitous adventure, much like a rabbit hole. As the economic, mental health, and medical consequences of prescribing opioid medications have mounted, the prevailing logic regarding the usefulness of prescribing opioids for chronic pain has shifted. The widespread dissemination of opiates and the lax safety measures placed on their storage has also led to an increase in nonmedical use. Given the high level of comorbidity between opioid use disorders and chronic pain, providers' decisions about how to address treatment with patients who may have or who have been diagnosed with substance use disorders are often complex. The new CDC guidelines will require providers to assess for risk of overdose or development of a substance use disorder, and to be keenly aware of their patients' pain levels and pain management strategies when working as part of a system where opioid medications may be prescribed. Participants will learn how patient and provider education programs and communication interventions may improve outcomes in pain management. Participants will also learn how to select candidates for opioid trials, assess for risk, and initiate opioid therapy, but only after exploring nonopioid and nonpharmacological strategies.

David Cosio, PhD

9:30a - 9:40a - Break & Exhibits

9:40a - 10:40a - Walking the Line: Opioid Dose De-escalation

UAN 0530-0000-18-212-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

The shift away from opioid use in medication management for chronic pain has changed the dynamic of opioid prescribing in many ways. Now, more than ever, prescribers are under the microscope regarding selection of opioids and doses as well as clinical documentation and appropriate action based on findings during the patient visit. Risks of opioids outweighing the benefits due to lack of effect, adverse effects, or aberrant behavior are just some of the possible justifications when considering opioid tapering. There are other instances when there is outright dangerous or illegal behavior that justifies discontinuation of opioids. This lecture will review different patient situations and discuss when to taper or discontinue opioids and how to implement the change in opioid therapy.

Courtney M. Kominek, PharmD, BCPS, CPE

10:40a - 11:40a - The Other Opioid Crisis: Fentanyl and Heroin

UAN 0530-0000-18-055-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Course Description

There is a significant amount of media, political, and public attention paid to the opioid crisis/opioid epidemic in the United States. With the seemingly ever-increasing number of opioid related overdoses and fatalities, there has been a feverish push by stakeholders to diminish the amount of opioids prescribed in order to help stem these worrisome trends. Unfortunately, there may be a lack of focus regarding the true definition and characterization of the opioid epidemic. There may also be a rush to judgment about the role of appropriately prescribed opioid analgesics in the addiction crisis we face today. This presentation will discuss the roles and statistics of both prescription and illicit opioids--namely fentanyl and heroin--in today's "opioid overdose epidemic" with the intention of clarifying important differences and similarities between these competing epidemics including concerns and clinical considerations specific to each of them. Additionally, this program will examine and identify how these medications and drugs share potentially tragic adverse effect profiles in many cases. However, it is important for clinicians to make sure that appropriate chronic pain patients who may be candidates for opioid analgesic therapy aren't penalized, and still get the treatment they deserve.

Kevin L. Zacharoff, MD, FACIP, FACPE, FAAP

11:40a - 12:00p - Faculty Q&A

12:00p - 12:10p - Break & Exhibits

12:10p - 12:40p - Box lunch will be served.

12:40p - 1:30p - The Gentle Art of Saying No: How to Establish Appropriate Boundaries With Chronic Pain Patients

UAN 0530-0000-18-054-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.0

Effective pain management has been deemed a human right, but some chronic pain patients perceive that to mean they are entitled to opioid analgesics for prolonged pain control. In response to these expectations, providers may feel pressured to say "Yes" and continue prescribing opioids, thereby reinforcing the patient's beliefs and reliance on medication. This has contributed to a dramatic rise in opioid analgesic misuse and deaths from prescription drug overdose. In fact, the CDC has identified opioid misuse as a "public health epidemic" and released new guidelines in March 2016. While a collaborative relationship is optimal for pain management, there may be times when a practitioner saying "No" is the best treatment. Many providers feel uncomfortable setting boundaries; however, boundary setting is important work because rights as a provider are also important. When reasonable limits are placed on a patient and the patient continues to step beyond those limits, it is imperative that providers maintain boundaries and be consistent in their message. Participants will learn about the gentle art of saying "No" and how to use a decision tree when making pain management decisions. Sample cases will be presented along with recommended treatment strategies.

David Cosio, PhD

1:30p - 2:20p - Nonopioid Analgesics: Antidepressants, Adjuvant Therapies, and Muscle Relaxants

UAN 0530-0000-18-042-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 1.0

Course Description

Nonopioid analgesics are oftentimes considered first-line therapy for most chronic pain syndromes. A strong understanding of these agents' mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, and toxicity profiles is paramount for today's pain practitioner. This course will provide an in-depth look at each of the agents within these drug classes, their potential role in pain management, and available data supporting their use. Additionally, clinically relevant monitoring pearls will be discussed.

Courtney M. Kominek, PharmD, BCPS, CPE

2:20p - 3:10p - The Regulatory Agency Will See You Now

UAN 0530-0000-18-056-L01-P

AANP Rx Hours 0.4

Course Description

Despite high prevalence and seemingly continuous attention, the clinical challenges associated with assessing, treating, and managing patients with chronic pain continue to persist. Many different forces are at play and responsible for this frequently frustrating situation and, as is often the case, the person with the most at risk is the patient with chronic pain. There is no deficit of opinions for possible solutions to this problem. In fact, the number of potential solutions seems to increase each year, all with the intent of helping pain care be more safe and effective, and most trying to stem the negative consequences of abuse, misuse, and diversion of prescription pain medications. Clinicians have had to juggle these good intentions along with the fear of regulatory scrutiny. This course will present and detail the variety of current regulatory forces that need to be considered in clinical practice; how they can potentially impact clinical decisions regarding chronic pain; and how they can be negotiated. A number of regulatory agencies are now "sitting at the pain management table" for the foreseeable future and it is critical to navigate the waters without sacrificing that most important stakeholder: the patient.

Kevin L. Zacharoff, MD, FACIP, FACPE, FAAP

 

*Not certified for credit.