AMA NEWS Richard Soper, MD, chief medical officer and director of addiction medicine at the Center for Behavioral Wellness in Nashville, Tenn., agreed with Dr. Carr that reducing stigma is key to improving care, especially among patients struggling with substance abuse and mental illness. “The antidote for the toxic presence of stigma is proper medical treatment,” he said, noting that physicians must alter how they discuss addiction, mental health and treatment. “We need some shifting in conversation and the verbiage amongst ourselves and the general public,” he said. How physicians can advance opioid education and prescribing practices Patrice A. Harris, MD, chair-elect of the AMA Board of Trustees, who chairs the AMA Task Force to Reduce Prescription “It’s up to us to be the leaders our nation and our patients need to bring an end to this public health crisis.” —Patrice A. Harris, MD Opioid Abuse, encouraged physicians also to study the best practices for prescribing opioids, managing pain and treating substance use disorder. The task force web page offers a collection of the best educational resources from more than 70 organizations, including state medical associations and medical specialty societies. “Challenge yourself and your colleagues to ensure they have the latest information about safe, effective prescribing,” Dr. Harris said. She also urged physicians to adopt prescribing and co-prescribing the opioid overdose reversal drug Naloxone to patients who are at risk. Dr. Harris noted, “It’s up to us to be the leaders our nation and our patients need to bring an end to this public health crisis.” It is only through the support of our members that this work from the AMA is possible. Help sustain our advocacy efforts on issues of importance to you and your patients. Please activate your 2016 AMA membership by visiting ama-assn.org/go/join or call AMA Member Relations at (800) 262-3211. w ww.TheOMA.org Winter 2016 31
OMA Medicine in OR Winter 2015 2016
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