Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association Substance Use Disorder Prevention and Treatment Task Force

Charge

The Substance Use Disorder Prevention and Treatment Task Force (SUDPTTF) was developed at the direction of the MHA Board of Trustees to develop provider focused strategies to help address the high incidence of opioid misuse that affects our communities. The SUDPTTF is focused on developing operational practices within hospitals and physician practices that would assist in reducing the number of opioid pain prescriptions and result in a corresponding reduction in the number of opioid overdoses that are occurring in Massachusetts.

Task Force Guidlines

Guidelines for Opioid Management within a Hospital Setting

The SUDPTTF has approved and issued a second set of guidelines outlining several provider and operational recommendations related to prescribing opioid and/or opiate medications within a hospital setting, including hospital owned/affiliated clinics or physician practices. The goal is to develop a general standard for limiting the use of or finding alternatives to prescription opioids. We encourage all hospitals to adopt the recommendations. The guidance includes the following materials:

• Guidelines for Opioid Management by Clinicians and Staff within a Hospital Setting
• Suggested Opioid Prescribing Guidelines Flowchart, - Provides a quick, visually graphic picture of the prescribing process for physicians and providers who prescribe opioids as outlined in detail within the guidelines.
• Physician/Prescriber Reminders When Prescribing Opioids, - Jointly issued by MHA and Massachusetts Medical Society, - Provides a quick checklist of reminders for physicians and prescribers to reference when issuing opioid medication.
• Provider Core Competencies, - Jointly issued by MHA, MMS, COBTH, and DPH – Hospitals with a residency and/or fellowship program are requested to include these core competencies as part of their trainings to ensure that all future providers are aware of and meeting expected prescribing standards for opioids.
• Naloxone Standing Order Best Practices,- A summary of the state - recommended steps that facilities should follow if they choose to adopt a standing order within their internal pharmacies.
• Template Patient Fact Sheet, - Jointly issued by MHA and Massachusetts Medical Society, - It is recommended that patients are provided this form when a prescription opioid is issued (or a provider may use some or all of this language in your existing fact sheets provided to patients)
• Template Medication Storage Fact Sheet, - Proposed recommendations for safe and appropriate storage of opioid medications within a patient’s residence that may also be provided to patients when a prescription is issued
• Available Drug Disposal Options, - Provides an overview of local and statewide appropriate and safe disposal options for opioids. Also provides space for a hospital to include information on disposal options within each facility, if available.
• Hospital Commitment Letter, - Asking all hospitals to complete to demonstrate their commitment to each of the six provider and eight operational recommendations
• Members who have signed the Opioid Management within a Hospital Guidelines commitment letter

Emergency Department Opioid Management Guidelines

The first guidelines developed by the task force impacts opioid prescribing practices within hospital Emergency Departments (ED).  The ED Opioid Management Guidelines establish a baseline ED operational practice that will: standardize opioid prescribing practices, provide guidance on screening patients seeking opioid prescriptions, offer information on appropriate pain management and treatment, and help identify resources for patients needing substance use treatment. The overall goal is to better enable ED providers to take an active role in limiting inappropriate access to opioid pain medications.  The materials include the following:

• MHA Guidelines for Emergency Department Opioid Management 
• Emergency Department Opioid Management Patient Information Sheet 
• Members who have signed the Emergency Department Guidelines Commitment Letter 

 

Resources

• Screening Tools Resource Packet
• MHA Annual Emergency Medicine Conference 2015 Slide Deck – All Presentations.
• CDC AHA Prescription Opioids, What you need to know, June 2016.

 

Work Plan

The specific action items of the MHA proposed Substance Use Disorder Task Force will be to consider the following:

1. Develop provider specific medical protocols or other clinical practices that will ensure better outcomes of care for substance use disorder patients after receiving care at a healthcare facility by : 

• a. improving prescribing practices; and
  b. changing internal clinical care protocols within the facility (hospital, clinic, medical home, community health center) related to treatment plans and patient education on the use of  opiate prescriptions.

2. Coordinate and share hospital specific best practices/strategies for medical protocols and clinical practices among healthcare providers. 

3. Organize subgroups to assist with monitoring and advocating for federal and state regulatory actions that would assist with implementing medical protocols or clinical practices

• a. Including but not limited to advocating with public and private payers to remove financial incentives through patient satisfaction measures to prescribe greater opiate prescriptions.

4. Identify and link hospitals with existing state resources, grants, and other funding to assist with developing community education, clinical practices, and operational policies;

Description : Drug Epidemic & Substance Use in Plymouth and South Shore

MHA Substance Use Disorders Prevention and Treatment Task Force members

Chairs:       Peter J. Holden, President & CEO, BID Hospital-Plymouth
                     Pat Noga, PhD, RN, VP, Clinical Affairs, MHA

•  Alex Walley, MD, Clinical Addiction Research, Boston Medical Center
•  Amanda L. Jenkins, MD, Senior Science Director, Quest Diagnostics, Inc.
•  Carol Plotkin, LICSW, System Director of Behavioral Health, Hallmark Health System
• Cheryl Bartlett, RN, Executive Director, CCRSAPI, Cape Cod Healthcare
• Douglas Munsey, MD, Medical Director, Behavioral Health Service, Southcoast Hospitals Group
• Edward Boyer, MD, PhD, Emergency Physician & Chief of Medical Toxicology, UMass Memorial
• James S. Gessner, MD, President-Elect, Massachusetts Medical Society
• Jeffrey W. Hillis, JD, MBA, President, AdCare Hospital
• John M. Connolly, MD, Chief of Anesthesia, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Plymouth
• Julia Lindenberg, MD, Associate Medical Director, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
• Kevin Norton, CEO, Lahey Behavioral Health, Lahey Health System
• Melisa Lai Becker, MD, Site Chief of Emergency Medicine, Cambridge Health Alliance
• Michele L. Gougeon, Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer, McLean Hospital
• Nalan Ward, MD, Director, Outpatient Addiction Services, Massachusetts General Hospital
• Niels K. Rathlev, MD., FACEP, Professor and Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine, Baystate Medical Center
• Robert J. Moura, MS, RPh, FMSHP, Director of Pharmacy Services, Emerson Hospital
• Robert Roose, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Addiction Services, Sisters of Providence (Mercy)
• Sharon Levy, MD, Director, Adolescent Substance Abuse program, Boston Children’s Hospital
• Stephen Ryzewicz, MD, Internist/Academic Hospitalist, Baystate Medical Center
• Steven Defossez, MD, EMHL, VP, Clinical Integration, MHA
• Tu Anh Ngo, PhD, MPH, Co-Director, Primary Care Behavioral Health, Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital

• Home Care Alliance of MA
             Elaine Fluet, President/CEO of GVNA Healthcare, Inc.

• MHA Clinical Issues Advisory Council (CIAC):
             Terry Sievers, MS, RN, CPHQ, VP, Quality & Patient Safety, Lawrence General Hospital

• MHA Physician Hospital Integration Collaborative (PHIC):
           Michael Sheehy, MD, Medical Director for Population Health, Reliant Medical Group
           Jacob Kagan, MD, Specialty Director, Behavioral Health, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates

• MHA Physician Leadership Council (PLC)
           Arthur Russo, MD, Vice President Medical Affairs, Harrington Hospital
           Richard Weiner, MD, FACS, VP, Medical Affairs, Winchester Hospital and PLC Co-chair

• Organization of Nurse Leaders of MA-RI (ONL)
           Timothy Quigley, R.N., Chief Nursing Officer, South Shore Hospital and ONL Board Member