lowed by a case conference where doctors can present their difficult cases for discussion with their peers and with a panel of subspecialists in addiction management , psychology , physical therapy , and clinical pharmacy .
“ The majority of physicians have never had a lecture on improving pain management ,” said Dr . Smith , “ AR-IMPACT is ongoing and it ’ s free . You could get all your continuing education for an entire year from it if you wanted to in 20 sessions . Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield is paying for this for the first two years , with help from the Office of State Drug Director . Prescribers should take advantage of it . If you ’ re worried about your opioid prescribing , this is a way to help yourself .”
More New Training Through Uams
As aforementioned , Act 1208 requires mandatory prescribing education within the first two years of practice . To help prescribers fulfill this requirement , UAMS has developed a free , online three-session course on appropriate prescribing . The modules are available as of August 27 , 2018 . For additional information or to register , visit uams . cloud-cme . com and select Online Courses . You may contact the Office of Continuing Education at 501-661-7962 if you have questions or problems accessing course materials .
More Work to Be Done
Since the Task Force ’ s recommendation for more comprehensive care , more than 50,000 physicians ( nationally ) have become certified to provide in-office buprenorphine for treatment of opioid use disorder – a 42.2 % increase .
Recent Task Force reports share that in 2017 , more than 549,700 physicians and other providers nationwide completed continuing medical education related to opioid prescribing , pain management , screening for substance use disorders , and related areas . The same report , however , states that “ to help ensure patients receive care , health insurance companies , Medicaid , and other payers must now remove administrative barriers , such as prior authorization for medication assisted treatment ( MAT ).”
These and many other barriers mean that there is still much work to do , and much more to talk about from so many perspectives . “ I don ’ t think you can write too much about this in the next few years ,” said Dr . Smith . “ The governor is committed to it , and it ’ s a national public health emergency , so we ’ ve got to get some traction .”
Make no mistake . The AMS is among those highly committed to the cause . Continue reading The Journal in the coming months as we cover certain facets in more depth . Meanwhile , for answers to your questions related to the efforts presented here , call AMS at ( 501 ) 224-8967 .
* CDC Guidelines for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain ( supported by AMA and AMS ): https :// www . cdc . gov / drugoverdose / prescribing / guideline . html
** Arkansas Emergency Department Opioid Prescribing Guidelines : https :// www . arkmed . org / resources / prescription-monitoring /
*** Primary Care and the Opioid-Overdose Crisis — Buprenorphine Myths and Realities
An audio Interview with Dr . Brendan Saloner on increasing access to medication for treatment of opioid use disorder .
Listen at https :// www . nejm . org / doi / full / 10.1056 / NEJMp1802741
SAVE THE DATE
Table Rock Regional Roundup A Regional Ophthalmology Conference September 27-29 Big Cedar Lodge | Ridgedale , Mo . _____________________ www . tablerockroundup . org
Arkansas Urologic Society Annual Meeting
October 12-13 Hilton Garden Inn | Little Rock _____________________
Contact Kay Waldo , kwaldo @ arkmed . org
Annual AMS Insurance Conference
October 2 & 3 Little Rock Wyndham Hotel
October 11 Fayetteville , Hilton Garden Inn
October 18 Jonesboro , ASU Convocation Center
NUMBER 4 OCTOBER 2018 • 83