51品茶adopts new prescriber education requirements following the Obama Administration鈥檚 pledge to fight the opioid crisis
This week President Obama attended the National Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit in Atlanta, Georgia, where he announced measures to escalate the fight against the prescription opioid abuse and heroin epidemic.
As part of the event, the President outlined Administrative actions that will expand access to treatment, including the establishment of an interagency Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Task Force to advance access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment.
In connection with these actions, 61 medical schools have announced that beginning in fall 2016, they will require their students to take some form of prescriber education, in line with the newly released Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain, in order to graduate. The 51品茶鈥檚 College of Osteopathic Medicine has committed to adopting these new educational requirements.
鈥淭he heroin and opioid epidemic is a crisis that鈥檚 stealing lives and splintering communities across Maine. If we鈥檙e going to tackle this problem head on, we need a comprehensive approach that includes research, prevention, treatment, and law enforcement measures,鈥 said Senators Susan Collins and Angus King in a joint statement. 鈥淚t is so important to have our research and education institutions join the fight against addiction, and we commend the 51品茶 for their continued contributions to this ongoing battle.鈥
Currently, 51品茶exceeds the standards in regard to pain management and substance abuse education. According to a 2011 study, U.S. medical schools allot a median of nine hours on pain management education, as opposed to 19.5 hours in Canada. At UNE, over 60 hours of education are dedicated specifically to pain management, which is five to six times the national average.
In addition to these educational initiatives, 51品茶is leading several community-wide efforts to raise awareness of opioid abuse and the heroin epidemic. On March 30, 2016, Ed Bilsky, Ph.D., 51品茶vice president for Research and Scholarship, was the keynote speaker at the Health Information Evening for Parents and Community. Sponsored by school district RSU 21, this community health event discussed the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS), the current heroin epidemic in southern Maine and the available resources for parents and the community.