Additional Training Resources related to Treating Patients Who Use Drugs

The Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA DOH) and Quality Insights have partnered to provide live and virtual opioid education sessions at no cost to you. In an effort to empower medical professionals to identify patients struggling with substance use disorder, PA DOH, PA Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have released a series of learning modules and tools to promote evidence-based prescribing. All educational modules meet the Medical and Osteopathic Board’s continuing medical education (CME) credit requirement of Patient Safety/Risk Management, and modules 3-7 may be used to meet the PA Act 124 of 2016 CME requirements for opioid education. Sessions also provide 1.0 nursing contact hours (PA only). 

Module 4: Opioid Prescribing Guide may be particularly useful:

Learning objectives include:

  1. Provide guidelines to inform all healthcare providers when prescribing opioids in the acute phase of pain;
  2. Instruct healthcare providers on how to prescribe opioids in the chronic phase of pain, which includes information on how to initiate or continue opioid therapy, select the correct dose, and/or discontinue opioids;
  3. Instruct healthcare providers on how to assess risks and address harms associated with opioid use;
  4. Instruct healthcare providers on the legal responsibilities related to prescribing opioids; and
  5. Instruct healthcare providers on how they may direct patients to dispose of unused medications.

View the training session schedule or contact Rabecca Dase at rdase@qualityinsights.org to schedule a private session.

As of May, 2023, 3 NEW modules have been added to this training series:

It Takes a Team: Providing Evidence-Based Care to People Living with Opioid Use Disorder (audience is for a non-prescriber, but prescribers can still get credit for the session) (NOW scheduling sessions)

  1. Use the Pennsylvania Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) as part of care team strategy to screen and identify people living with SUD.
  2. Identify tools, communication strategies, and community resources to support evidence-based care for people living with SUD.
  3. Explain how providing evidence-base care and support to people living in recovery can promote continued commitment to beneficial lifestyle changes.

Continuing Education
Nursing: 1.0 contact hour
Physician: 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s) ™.

In support of patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by the CAMC Health Education and Research Institute and Quality Insights. CAMC Health Education and Research Institute is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Strategies for Improving Maternal and Infant Health Related to Opioid Use (scheduling coming soon)

  1. Recognize the importance of evidence-based interventions to treat opioid use disorder in pregnancy for both mother and infant.
  2. Explain how stigma effects access and delivery of care to pregnant and postpartum people living with opioid use disorder (OUD).
  3. Determine strategies to assess opioid use disorder in pregnant and postpartum people and provide referral to assessment and treatment.
  4. Explain care considerations for pregnant and postpartum women, and infants born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS)/neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS).

Continuing Education
Nursing: 1.0 contact hour
Physician: 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s) ™.

In support of patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by the CAMC Health Education and Research Institute and Quality Insights. CAMC Health Education and Research Institute is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Opioid Prescribing in Dentistry (audience is for Dentists and Hygienists) (NOW scheduling sessions)

  1. Advise the oral health community on the role they play in addressing the opioid epidemic;
  2. Provide guidelines to inform the oral health community how to appropriately manage dental pain; and
  3. Provide resources for the oral health community pertaining to opioids in dentistry such as PDMP usage, electronic prescribing, and further education.

Continuing Education
These activities have been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of ADA CERP through partnership with the Office of Drug Surveillance and Misuse Prevention and the University of Pittsburgh. The maximum number of hours awarded for this Continuing Education activity is 1.0 contact hours. Other health care professionals will receive a certificate of attendance confirming the number of contact hours applicable to the extent of participation in this activity.

View the training session schedule or contact Rabecca Dase at rdase@qualityinsights.org to schedule a private session.

Additional information for webinars available through Quality Insights: https://www.qualityinsights.org/stateservices/projects/pa-pdmp

The PA Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) offers additional programs at https://apps.ddap.pa.gov/tms/Logon.aspx