Balancing Opioid Abuse Prevention Strategies with Legitimate Need to Prevent Under-Treatment is organized by Pharmacy Times Continuing Education (PTCE). This Conference has been approved for a maximum of 1.0 contact hour (0.10 CEU).

Expires: August 16, 2020

Target Audience:
Retail and health-system pharmacists

Course Description:
More than half of the adults in America are currently living with some magnitude of pain. The emotional and physical burden related to pain and its treatment is greater than the combined total associated with diabetes, coronary heart disease/stroke, and cancer. Although over-the-counter regimens for pain are available, physicians are commonly prescribing opioids, leading to an increase in opioid abuse, opioid-related death, and termination of parental rights. It is crucial for pharmacists to identify situations of potential misuse and be able to address the balance between abuse deterrence and legitimate pain control and create educational opportunities to positively impact patient outcomes and associated costs.

Educational Objectives:
Upon completion of this educational activity, participants will be able to:
• Examine the effects of the opioid epidemic on safe and appropriate pain management in today’s health care system
• Identify current federal and state initiatives in place to address the opioid epidemic
• Explore available abuse-deterrent formulations and their strengths and limitations with an emphasis on safety
• Determine strategies that will improve opioid prescribing and increase patient safety in each pharmacist’s unique practice setting

Additional details will be posted as soon as information is available.