In 2009, NYSAM worked with the New York State Department of Health and the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services to develop guidelines for the management of patients with opioid overdose who present to emergency departments. These guidelines have been distributed to emergency department Medical and Nursing Directors state-wide, but these departments are unlikely to act on such recommendations without additional assistance.
Please read the attached copy of the Guidelines. As you can readily see the recommended changes are many and are as of yet without a plan of action. The Policy Committee would like to form a work group to help plan and produce a pilot program implementing at least some of these recommendations. Any volunteers?
In addition NYSAM issued written testimony for the New York State Assembly hearings on the subject of Prescription Misuse. The testimony covers patient education, access to pharmacy databases for prescribing physicians, emergency department treatment issues, increasing the availability of buprenorphine and other addiction treatments, and providing physicians more education or training in addiction medicine. Read this testimony and add your comments and suggestions below.
