Search results for "Substance Abuse"
Internists can help with alcohol misuse
New legislation in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates that insurance plans cover alcohol treatment as an essential health care benefit, prompting internists to integrate care for alcohol use disorders into their practices.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2015/10/alcohol.htm
1 Oct 2015
Rates of substance abuse treatment remain low for opioid use disorders despite their rapidly rising incidence
While the greatest increases occurred in inpatient treatment and at physicians' offices, medication-assisted treatments were often unavailable in inpatient settings.
https://immattersacp.org/weekly/archives/2015/10/20/4.htm
20 Oct 2015
Screening for PTSD after life-threatening medical events
Internists are in position to screen for and spot signs of post-traumatic stress disorder following life-threatening medical events such as heart attack and stroke. Yet this is not always part of usual care.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2015/11/ptsd.htm
1 Nov 2015
States aim to limit opioid prescriptions
In an effort to curb the nation's opioid crisis, state legislators are pursuing laws to limit prescribing, resulting in pushback from some doctors worried about the clinical implications, or in some cases physicians backing off from treating chronic pain patients.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2016/10/laws.htm
1 Oct 2016
Safe prescribing can lessen overdose risk
In what one commentator called an “appalling” finding, 90% of patients in a recent study admitted to a hospital with a prescription opioid overdose eventually received another opioid prescription##mdash;often from the same clinician. Efforts to improve safe prescribing hope to fix the problem.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2016/10/overdose.htm
1 Oct 2016
Medical schools respond to the opioid epidemic
Until very recently, medical schools offered little or no training in addiction medicine.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2017/01/opioids-medical-education.htm
1 Jan 2017
Assessment may offer another option for substance abuse screening
A screening tool has high sensitivity and specificity for identifying use of illicit drugs and prescription medications, which might be useful to address an opioid epidemic and high rates of overdose deaths across the U.S.
https://immattersacp.org/weekly/archives/2017/06/06/2.htm
6 Jun 2017
Clearing patients for takeoff a new duty for internists
More than 100,000 pilots annually can now request a comprehensive physical examination and medication review from any state-licensed physician. What should internists look for when faced with such a request?
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2017/07/clearing-patients-for-takeoff-a-new-duty-for-internists.htm
1 Jul 2017
To lie down, perchance to sleep
Internists are good at picking up on obstructive sleep apnea, but chronic insomnia is underdiagnosed among a sleepy patient population.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2017/09/to-lie-down-perchance-to-sleep.htm
1 Sep 2017
Caring for ex-prisoners presents management challenges
When caring for patients who have been released from prison, internists must consider the economic and social obstacles that can impact the plan of care, as well as the difficulty of coordinating with jails and prisons and obtaining patients' medical records.
https://immattersacp.org/archives/2017/09/caring-for-ex-prisoners-presents-management-challenges.htm
1 Sep 2017