| Article
A new approach to prescription drug monitoring in patients on chronic opioid therapy is claimed to offer significant advantages over urine drug testing according to the manufacturer, Cordant Health Solutions. In a press announcement earlier this week, the Cordant Comprehensive Oral fluid Rx...
| Article
A study conducted by researchers from University of Kentucky College of Public Health, Lexington reports that states which elected to expand Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act saw a significant increase in the prescribing of buprenorphine. Study author Hefei Wen, PhD, stated, "Our...
| Video
A clinical pharmacy specialist turns the spotlight on an option for chronic pain management that many clinicians may not have considered. Buprenorphine offers advantages to patients who are indicated for opioid therapy, but are at risk for adverse effects, While reimbursement is an issue, it...
| Article
In December, 2016, the New York State Health Department announced plans to modify the state medical marijuana program to include chronic pain as a qualifying condition. A regulatory amendment to this effect was submitted for public comment, and last week the Department announced that the addition...
| Article
A study from the University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation recommends that doctors should determine if their patients who are scheduled for elective abdominal surgery are already taking opioids. The study found that these patients experienced longer hospital stays and...
| Article
The landscape for prescribers is changing today. Many state licensing boards are adopting new rules or guidelines. Many of them are looking at the CDC guidelines and trying to figure out do they need to incorporate them. Prescribers really need to understand what their licensing boards are doing and...
| Article
Results of a national survey conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg school of Public Health conclude that up to 70% of opioid prescriptions kept in homes with children are not being safely stored. Safe storage was defined by the survey as having the medication in a locked or latched...
| Podcast
Practitioners routinely wrestle with the issue of medication aberrant behavior (MAB)--What should I do about this? Should I discharge the patient? Will I get in trouble if I don't discharge this patient? Often there is no one right answer, and practitioners struggle with what to do in the face of a...
| Podcast
Every day something new happens in pain management. One day it might be a change in a licensing board practice standards and the next day might bring new legislation on opioid overdose prevention. Whatever the case, pain management practitioners need a system to help keep themselves and their staff...
| Podcast
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...