A brief overview of Pennsylvania’s program to implement warm hand-off’s to treatment for individuals seen in hospitals and emergency departments for addiction related issues. In 2016 the state Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs required all county addiction authorities to develop a warm hand-off plan for individuals treated for opioid overdose in a hospital or emergency department. The program has significantly increased the percentage of patients who enter treatment after receiving a screening and assessment and a direct referral to treatment through this program. Part of the Addiction Policy Forum’s Spotlight series which highlights innovative programs to address the opioid crisis.
Resource Tag: Hospitals
Spotlight: AnchorED Rhode Island
A brief overview of the AnchorED program in Rhode Island which connects patients seen in the emergency department (ED) for an opioid-related overdose with a trained peer recovery coach. ED staff call the AnchorED hotline which dispatches recovery coaches to meet patients 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The coaches provide the patient with information about recovery supports and resources and may educate the patient or caregivers on naloxone use to treat overdose. Preliminary evaluation reports show that more than 80 percent of patients who meet with the coaches engage in some recovery support services upon discharge. Part of the Addiction Policy Forum’s Spotlight series which highlights innovative programs to address the opioid crisis. Continue reading
Spotlight: Yale Emergency Department Treatment Initiation
A brief overview of the emergency department (ED) based induction to buprenorphine program initiated at Yale New Haven Hospital. This report describes a randomized controlled trial that provided patients with opioid use disorder seen in the emergency room with either a substance use disorder screening and referral to treatment, a screening and brief intervention with facilitated referral to treatment, or induction to buprenorphine medicated assisted treatment and a referral to follow up treatment. Those patients offered buprenorphine were significantly more likely to be engaged in treatment 30 days later than the other patients. This model has subsequently been adopted in EDs across the country. This report is part of the Addiction Policy Forum’s Spotlight series which highlights innovative programs to address the opioid crisis. Continue reading
Medication Assisted Treatment – Hospitals and Emergency Departments
Hospital inpatient care programs and emergency departments are increasingly developing policies and programs to provide medication assisted treatment (MAT) to their patients. This collection features guidelines from the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association, resources and tools from the California American College of Emergency Physicians, and links to the Public Health Institute’s California Bridge Program and the California Health Care Foundation’s Support for Hospital Opioid Use Treatment (SHOUT) initiative. Also included is a link to Massachusetts General Hospital’s “Get Waivered” campaign which provides free buprenorpine waiver training and support for creating emergency department programs.
Support for Hospital Opioid Use Treatment (SHOUT)
This website includes links to 7 webinars that make up the Support for Hospital Opioid Use Treatment (Project SHOUT) initiative of the California Health Care Foundation. Topics covered in the webinar series include: the case for inpatient opioid agonist therapy; buprenorphine and methadone induction; acute pain and Continue reading
California Bridge Program
The California Bridge Program works with hospitals and emergency departments in California to create programs to induct patients with opioid use disorder onto medication assisted treatment in the acute care setting and facilitate access to substance use disorder treatment by using treatment navigators. Their goal is to change the standard of care for treating Continue reading
St. Joseph’s ALTO – Alternatives to Opiates
This is the website for the ALTO (Alternatives to Opiates) Program which provides alternative treatments for some common pain conditions seen in emergency departments. The website provides background information on the program, contact information, and links to media coverage of the initiative. Continue reading
How to Pay for It – MAT in the Emergency Department
A guide to strategies for paying for medication assisted treatment (MAT) for patients with opioid use disorder seen in the emergency department. Part of the “how to pay for it” series from the California Health Care Foundation as part of the California Bridge program, this report describes strategies for how hospitals can receive reimbursement for MAT services provided in the emergency department. Continue reading
A Tool for Opioid Use Disorders in the Emergency Department – Buprenorphine, Suboxone
This 2 page guide from the California chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians provides a brief overview of administering buprenorphine or suboxone to patients in the emergency department. for treatment of opioid withdrawal. Not a guide for long term medication assisted treatment induction, but a brief overview of when and how to use these medications in an emergency department setting. Continue reading
Safe Medicine Prescribing – Spanish
The California chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians created this patient education flyer to educate emergency department patients about safe prescribing practices. Spanish language version. Continue reading