More action needed to address opioid epidemic
It is increasingly clear that we face an epidemic of opioid overdose and addiction in this country. Drug overdoses — most of them involving opioids — have surpassed car crashes as the leading cause of accidental death nationwide. Here in Washington state, about 600 people die each year from overdosing on opioids, with an increasing number involving heroin.
As physicians, we see firsthand the terrible toll on patients and their families resulting from the misuse of opioids. We want to work with partners across the state to address the opioid crisis while making sure that patients with pain still get the relief they need.
Last month the Washington State Medical Association and the Washington State Hospital Association launched a joint task force to address the opioid epidemic, with a focus on finding ways that physicians and hospitals can play a more active role in tackling this issue.
The medical community has already taken significant steps to re-examine its practices around prescribing opioids to ensure appropriate pain care while reducing opioid misuse. For the past several years, the WSMA and the American Medical Association have strongly encouraged doctors to participate in medical education focused on safe, effective and appropriate prescribing.
We have also asked physicians to use the state’s prescription monitoring program (PMP) — an important tool that enables health care professionals to check a patient’s medical history for red flags indicating a possible substance use disorder, such as recent prescriptions for pain medications from multiple doctors or pharmacies. Physicians and other health care professionals have increased their use of the state’s PMP every year.
These efforts are showing positive results. Since 2008, there has been a steady decline in hospitalizations and deaths from unintentional overdoses involving prescription opioids. Another positive sign is that opioid prescriptions decreased in our state by 6 percent from 2013 to 2015 as physicians looked for other ways to treat pain.
Yet, physicians’ prescribing practices are only one part of a complex problem. We must be careful that our efforts to reduce prescription opioid misuse do not result in patients turning to heroin. Sadly, deaths from heroin overdose continue to rise.
We need to address opioid addiction and overdose across the entire spectrum, from prevention to treatment. As a medical community, we applaud positive steps such as expanding access to naloxone, the overdose antidote, and expanding access to treatment.
We stand committed to working with government agencies, local health departments, community organizations and others to develop and implement long-term solutions.
The need is clear. The time is now. Let’s move forward.
Ray C. Hsiao, M.D., is a child psychiatrist and addiction specialist at Seattle Children’s and president of the Washington State Medical Association. Patrice A. Harris, M.D., is a psychiatrist in Atlanta, chair of the AMA Task Force to Reduce Opioid Abuse and chair of the American Medical Association Board of Trustees.
This story was originally published August 26, 2016 at 8:30 PM with the headline "More action needed to address opioid epidemic."