The Substance Use Response Guidance and Education (SURGE) program aims to increase access and improve the quality of treatment for health conditions related to substance use and substance use disorders in medical settings, with a special focus on primary care providers. Grant support allows us to offer programs at no cost to participants, including continuing education credits.
As part of the Training and Organizational Development division of Health Federation of Philadelphia, SURGE works in collaboration with the Substance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction (SUPHR) division of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) to develop training and learning collaborative programs that prepare health care providers to treat opioid use disorder as well as other conditions related to substance use in primary care and other medical settings.
SURGE is focused on developing a resilient health care workforce that is prepared to meet the complex needs and challenges posed by patients who use drugs. Our trainings, technical assistance, and learning collaboratives support practice improvement that is realistic and sustainable while advocating for timely, effective, and compassionate care for patients early in the disease process. Importantly, we work to prepare providers to use their skills to promote harm reduction and prevent overdose. While many providers have the credentials needed to treat patients who use drugs, some may feel unprepared to provide this kind of care. SURGE’s trainings and learning collaboratives—featuring ongoing, coordinated meetings focused on xylazine-associated wound care, mobile medical teams, and primary care providers—offer crucial support to healthcare professionals. These collaboratives help identify key areas for technical assistance and training, ensuring that providers receive the targeted guidance and education.
The SURGE program features a range of initiatives to support providers in the treatment of opioid use disorder. Among these, the Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) Preceptor Program offers didactic training followed by on-site observation with a faculty preceptor. It also fulfills the one-time, eight-hour training requirement for all Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)-registered practitioners on the treatment and management of patients with opioid or other substance use disorders. This program is complemented by case review sessions, which highlight the concurrent treatment of comorbidities associated with substance use and allow care team members to discuss common concerns arising in treatment scenarios. Additionally, the program provides professional support through monthly MOUD Provider Collaboratives and other trainings focused on emergent clinical issues.
For over 30 years, HFP has offered trainings that emphasize the need to destigmatize care and promote harm reduction. The eastern Pennsylvania regional partner of the MidAtlantic AIDS Education and Training Center, helping providers prevent, diagnose, and treat HIV since 1988, HFP is also the home of the Philadelphia ACES Connection, an online community of practice for individuals who are deeply committed to trauma and resilience work in areas ranging from education to the justice system, and from policy to parenting, and of the MARC (Mobilizing Action for Resilient Communities) project, using the science of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), trauma, and resilience—collectively called “ATR”—to build thriving and equitable communities.
To find out more about SURGE’s opportunities to learn, connect, and advance care for people who use substances, please reach out to us and start a conversation at surge@healthfederation.org.