P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective
Introduction: Canadians are the second largest consumers of prescription opioids per capita in the world. Emergency physicians tend to prescribe stronger and larger quantities of opioids, while family physicians write the most opioid prescriptions overall. These practices have been shown to precipit...
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crspringernat:10.1017/cem.2020.319 2023-05-15T17:22:17+02:00 P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective Doran, P. Sheppard, G. Metcalfe, B. 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cem.2020.319 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S148180352000319X en eng Springer Science and Business Media LLC https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms CJEM volume 22, issue S1, page S105-S106 ISSN 1481-8035 1481-8043 Emergency Medicine journal-article 2020 crspringernat https://doi.org/10.1017/cem.2020.319 2022-01-04T15:34:44Z Introduction: Canadians are the second largest consumers of prescription opioids per capita in the world. Emergency physicians tend to prescribe stronger and larger quantities of opioids, while family physicians write the most opioid prescriptions overall. These practices have been shown to precipitate future dependence, toxicity and the need for hospitalization. Despite this emerging evidence, there is a paucity of research on emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing practices in Canada. The objectives of this study were to describe our local emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing patterns both in the emergency department and upon discharge, and to explore factors that impact their prescribing decisions. Methods: Emergency physicians from two urban, adult emergency departments in St. John's, Newfoundland were anonymously surveyed using a web-based survey tool. All 42 physicians were invited to participate via email during the six-week study period and reminders were sent at weeks two and four. Results: A total of 21 participants responded to the survey. Over half of respondents (57.14%) reported that they “often” prescribe opioids for the treatment of acute pain in the emergency department, and an equal number of respondents reported doing so “sometimes” at discharge. Eighty-five percent of respondents reported most commonly prescribing intravenous morphine for acute pain in the emergency department, and over thirty-five percent reported most commonly prescribing oral morphine upon discharge. Patient age and risk of misuse were the most frequently cited factors that influenced respondents’ prescribing decisions. Only 4 of the 22 respondents reported using evidence-based guidelines to tailor their opioid prescribing practices, while an overwhelming majority (80.95%) believe there is a need for evidence-based opioid prescribing guidelines for the treatment of acute pain. Sixty percent of respondents completed additional training in safe opioid prescribing, yet less than half of respondents (42.86%) felt they could help to mitigate the opioid crisis by prescribing fewer opioids in the emergency department. Conclusion: Emergency physicians frequently prescribe opioids for the treatment of acute pain and new evidence suggests that this practice can lead to significant morbidity. While further research is needed to better understand emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing practices, our findings support the need for evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of acute pain to ensure patient safety. Article in Journal/Newspaper Newfoundland Springer Nature (via Crossref) Canada CJEM 22 S1 S105 S106 |
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Springer Nature (via Crossref) |
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English |
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Emergency Medicine |
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Emergency Medicine Doran, P. Sheppard, G. Metcalfe, B. P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
topic_facet |
Emergency Medicine |
description |
Introduction: Canadians are the second largest consumers of prescription opioids per capita in the world. Emergency physicians tend to prescribe stronger and larger quantities of opioids, while family physicians write the most opioid prescriptions overall. These practices have been shown to precipitate future dependence, toxicity and the need for hospitalization. Despite this emerging evidence, there is a paucity of research on emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing practices in Canada. The objectives of this study were to describe our local emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing patterns both in the emergency department and upon discharge, and to explore factors that impact their prescribing decisions. Methods: Emergency physicians from two urban, adult emergency departments in St. John's, Newfoundland were anonymously surveyed using a web-based survey tool. All 42 physicians were invited to participate via email during the six-week study period and reminders were sent at weeks two and four. Results: A total of 21 participants responded to the survey. Over half of respondents (57.14%) reported that they “often” prescribe opioids for the treatment of acute pain in the emergency department, and an equal number of respondents reported doing so “sometimes” at discharge. Eighty-five percent of respondents reported most commonly prescribing intravenous morphine for acute pain in the emergency department, and over thirty-five percent reported most commonly prescribing oral morphine upon discharge. Patient age and risk of misuse were the most frequently cited factors that influenced respondents’ prescribing decisions. Only 4 of the 22 respondents reported using evidence-based guidelines to tailor their opioid prescribing practices, while an overwhelming majority (80.95%) believe there is a need for evidence-based opioid prescribing guidelines for the treatment of acute pain. Sixty percent of respondents completed additional training in safe opioid prescribing, yet less than half of respondents (42.86%) felt they could help to mitigate the opioid crisis by prescribing fewer opioids in the emergency department. Conclusion: Emergency physicians frequently prescribe opioids for the treatment of acute pain and new evidence suggests that this practice can lead to significant morbidity. While further research is needed to better understand emergency physicians’ opioid prescribing practices, our findings support the need for evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of acute pain to ensure patient safety. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Doran, P. Sheppard, G. Metcalfe, B. |
author_facet |
Doran, P. Sheppard, G. Metcalfe, B. |
author_sort |
Doran, P. |
title |
P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
title_short |
P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
title_full |
P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
title_fullStr |
P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
title_full_unstemmed |
P113: Examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: A Newfoundland perspective |
title_sort |
p113: examining emergency physicians’ self-reported opioid prescribing practices for the treatment of acute pain: a newfoundland perspective |
publisher |
Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cem.2020.319 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S148180352000319X |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
Newfoundland |
genre_facet |
Newfoundland |
op_source |
CJEM volume 22, issue S1, page S105-S106 ISSN 1481-8035 1481-8043 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/cem.2020.319 |
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CJEM |
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22 |
container_issue |
S1 |
container_start_page |
S105 |
op_container_end_page |
S106 |
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1766108841561292800 |