Improving Access to Information on Opioid Use Disorders

Date & Location:

Monday, November 18,2019

This program is free of charge

Goal:

This interprofessional full day symposium is designed to assist healthcare professionals become more familiar with the issues and treatment of those with OUD.  In creating an interprofessional forum, we hope to embrace a team approach to a region which has experienced a high incidence of OUD.  The goal of this program is to help close some of those gaps and provide healthcare professionals the knowledge to better meet the needs of their patients.

Why Attend?

The prevalence of opioid use disorder (OUD) in Massachusetts is significantly higher than national estimates and fatalities in Western Massachusetts are staggering.  Enrollment in medication assisted therapy positively impacts outcomes.  Yet a small portion receive treatment.  Stigma against patients with addiction in healthcare is common and can translate into suboptimal treatment.  Join us at ths interprofessional symposium to increase awareness and learn about how we can work together to better treat patients with devastating disease.

Provided by:

Western New England University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Westfield State University, and Baystate Continuing Interprofessional Education.

Target Audience

This course is designed for healthcare practitioners including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, physician assistants, mental health counselors and others in the healthcare field.

Learning Objectives

• Recognize the physiologic basis of addiction.
• Identify the role of urine drug testing and interpretation of the results.
• Discuss the stigma of OUD seen in healthcare and methods to overcome.
• Describe the role and options for medication assisted therapy in patients with OUD.
• Identify regional resources and services and relate the challenges in the region.
• Discuss whether the fear of OUD has impacted legitimate pain management.