Washington State University (WSU) Health Sciences Spokane is teaching students in its medicine, pharmacy, and nursing programs how to care for patients suffering from opioid addiction. A two-hour class developed by faculty at the university will teach teamwork and communication to provide an effective approach to treatment for these sensitive patients.
The Washington Department of Health funded the development of the program. Almost 350 students from WSU and Eastern Washington University took the class in January and February. WSU will eventually be making the curriculum freely available online to any university that wants to offer the curriculum to its health sciences students and a follow-up grant will allow the university to adapt the material for use by rural health clinics.
Barbara Richardson, PhD, RN, an associate clinical professor in WSU’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, tells news.wsu.edu, “We know that a lot of times when patients run into problems with opioids its because there’s poor communication on the health care team. People can fall through the cracks; our goal is to build a system where the cracks don’t exist.”
The curriculum on how to create a team approach to opioid addiction covers roles and responsibilities, appropriate language, and conveying patient information to other members of an interprofessional healthcare team. To learn more about Washington State University’s new curriculum for teaching a team approach to opioid addiction to health sciences students, visit here.
Safety First: Nurses’ Role in Helping to Dispose of Medical Waste
While working in health care facilities, nurses are used to disposing of medical waste. It’s a part of the job. There are ways, though, to help with this in your communities as well. We interviewed Maricha Ellis, Vice President, Sales and Marketing Operations for Stericycle Environmental Solutions for more information on how you can help. What follows is an edited version of the interview.
Why is it important for nurses to have a role in medical waste disposal? What is that role?
Opioid drug-related overdose has risen steadily over the past two decades, becoming one of the leading causes of death in the United States. According to a recent study, more than 240 million prescriptions were written for opioids in one year. That’s enough to give every American adult their own pill bottle. As health care providers practicing on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, registered nurses play a central role in addressing this crisis. Nurses are qualified and well-positioned to play a leading role in not only diagnosing and managing patients in pain, but educating patients on proper storage and disposal techniques. The current crisis calls for support and focus from nurses through patient education. By pointing patients to drug takeback resources, such as safe and anonymous medication collection kiosks publicly available in the local area, nurses can prevent prescription opioids from reaching unintended individuals.
Is Stericycle Environmental Solutions focusing on nurses in hospitals? Or in various health care facilities?
Nurses in any health care facility can be a part of the solution, as the problem is not limited to hospitals alone. We welcome all nurses and health care facilities to participate.
How can nurses go about helping their communities regarding the safe disposal of medical waste?
The best way nurses can be a part of the solution to the nation’s opioid epidemic is by educating their patients on how they can reduce opioid risk for themselves, their families, and their communities. In order to prevent prescription opioids from falling into the wrong hands, opioid prescription storage and disposal techniques should be addressed at the time of prescribing, disbursement, and during follow-up care planning:
Safe storage of prescription opioids
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encourages patients to store medications out of children’s reach and sight and to lock the safety cap consistently after each use. Patients also should store medicines in a locked cabinet between doses and keep medications in their original containers, to prevent unintended use.
Safe disposal of unused or expired opioids
All expired and unused medications should be removed from the home quickly to reduce the chance of misuse. The safest and most environmentally friendly way to dispose of unused prescriptions is through medication takeback programs. In addition to permanent DEA-registered collection sites—including retail and hospital pharmacies, law enforcement facilities, and other organizations—there are periodic local and national takeback events. Medication collection envelopes are another safe and convenient method for consumers to return unwanted medication.
Tell me about the Medication Collection Kiosks and Seal&Send Medication Envelopes.
Stericycle Environmental Solutions’ takeback suite helps nurses keep their communities safe. Unused prescription medications can fall into the wrong hands, potentially poisoning or killing a loved one. Stericycle’s award-winning takeback suite features Seal&Send Medication Envelopes and Medication Collection Kiosks, making it convenient for consumers to safely return unwanted medication. Seal&Send Medication MailBack Envelopes provide a safe and convenient option for consumers to dispose of their unused or expired drugs by filling a pre-addressed envelope with pharmaceutical waste and dropping it into any USPS mailbox. These DEA-compliant 8×12” envelopes are designed to hold up to 8 oz. of medication, of which 4 oz. may be liquid in a sealed container. Envelopes are U.S. postage-paid, pre-addressed, and include complete instructions. Stericycle will destroy the medication using a process that is secure and safe for the environment. Because of Stericycle’s contributions to the National Safety Council’s traveling Prescribed to Death memorial that launched in November 2017, 8,500 Stericycle envelopes are in use, with millions in production. Stericycle’s envelopes are provided to memorial visitors to help them daily get rid of unused medications. Similarly, Medication Collection Kiosks offer a reliable, anonymous outlet for consumers to dispose of unwanted drugs in a safe place within their communities.
How can nurses and patients get the envelopes? Is there a charge for them?
Nurses and patients can order a free pack of three envelopes from the National Safety Council, as well as other free resources to reduce opioid risk. Additionally, nurses and the health care facilities in which they work can purchase packs of 50 envelopes from Stericycle here. Larger quantities are also available. [For more information and pricing, readers can contact Stericycle at [email protected] or 877-787-0375.]
How will nurses helping to dispose of medical waste help?
Because RNs practice in a variety of direct care and executive roles, they are often in a key position to help patients and their families understand proper disposal of opioids following a pain treatment plan. Proper disposal of opioids directly helps patients, their families, and their communities stay safe.
Why is it important that this is happening now?
Proper disposal of unused and expired opioids is especially important as the number of opioid-related deaths continues to rise nationwide. Drug overdose deaths have risen steadily over the past two decades, with drug poisonings propelling unintentional injuries to become the third leading cause of all deaths in the U.S. From 1999 to 2013, the rate for drug poisoning deaths involving opioids nearly quadrupled. The American Nurses Association has a series of helpful resources outlining best practices and proposals for how the situation can be improved on a national level available here.
Seton Hall University’s College of Nursing, School of Health and Medical Sciences, and the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine recently received an interprofessional training grant from the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, designed to expand patient access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder.
The Seton Hall University and Hackensack Meridian Health Interprofessional Medication-Assisted Treatment Training Program has been approved as a $404,905 commitment over three years. The project will be led by Kathleen Neville from the College of Nursing, Laura Goshko from the School of Health and Medical Sciences, and Stanley R. Terlecky from the School of Medicine, ensuring that all adult-gerontology nurse-practitioner, physician assistant, and physician students educated at the three schools will receive interprofessional didactic instruction and clinical supervision related to opioid use disorder and medication-assisted treatment plans.
Seton Hall University Dean Marie Foley tells SHU.edu, “Watching the opioid epidemic escalate and the devastation it creates to individuals, families and communities is heartbreaking. Being awarded this competitive grant and having the opportunity to hopefully make a difference by educating future health care providers to be able to prescribe medication-assisted treatment and to gain knowledge regarding the disease will be a most meaningful contribution.”
The project directors remain highly committed to their collaborate partnership to address the opioid epidemic in New Jersey. To learn more about Seton Hall University’s grant to help expand access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorders, visit here.
The Penn State Shenango nursing program 2018-19 lecture series was recently kicked off with a presentation and demonstration on “Opioid Overdose Awareness.” Shenango Campus Nursing Program Coordinator Dr. Joan Humphrey and Nursing Instructor Amy Higgins will facilitate the event, which will include a Narcan demonstration by flight paramedic Christopher Nagy and special guest lecturers Mercer County coroner John Libonati and emergency physician Dr. Richard Maenza.
Humphrey tells News.PSU.edu, “With the ever-increasing concern about opioid overdose in our area, we feel it is so important to continue to bring awareness to our community. If hearing what one of us has to say can help save or give support to someone who is addicted or to someone whose loved one is suffering because of opioid abuse, then we have done our job as health care and emergency care providers and will continue to hold these types of programs until this epidemic is no longer an issue.”
Humphrey is involved in emergency and urgent care settings as a nursing professional, and is also a practicing board-certified family nurse practitioner. She began teaching at the Shenango campus as a part-time instructor in 2001 and now serves as a nursing coordinator and assistant teaching professor. Higgins earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Penn State Shenango and recently joined the Shenango campus facility. She is currently pursuing a doctorate of nursing practice.
Libonati brings more than 30 years of experience in emergency medicine and trauma care, and Dr. Maenza brings his experience as an emergency physician with US Acute Care Solutions at Sharon Regional Medical Center where he serves as the quality director and EMS director.
To learn more about the Penn State Shenango lecture series on opioid overdose awareness and the nursing and healthcare professionals who will be facilitating the event, visit here.
Our Nurse of the Week is Angie Gray, a nurse from West Virginia who is working to fight the opioid epidemic through her harm reduction clinic. Gray started the first harm reduction program in her county in April 2017, with a syringe and needle exchange, inspired by witnessing the devastation of the opioid epidemic in her own community.
According to the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, there are at least 11 harm reduction programs across the state offering help to people with substance use disorders. These programs provide successful tools to help more people seek out long-term recovery.
Programs like the one that Gray runs work by providing syringe and needle exchange programs to help prevent disease and death for people suffering from substance use disorders. Gray also provides education about recovery and keeps patients’ names and information anonymous.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that harm reduction programs considerably reduce the spread of disease and do not increase illegal use of drugs, despite concerns about these types of programs.
Gray tells WVPublic.org, “If someone’s attending a harm reduction program, they’re five times more likely to seek recovery, because they’ve already made that initial connection. A lot of it is about the relationship building as well, building trust with people; helping them get to a better place in life.”
Gray’s program allowed her to serve more than 1,000 patients in the first year. As Gray’s harm reduction program continues to grow, she hopes to take the program on the road so that she can help meet the needs of people in rural areas too. To learn more about Angie Gray and how she is fighting the opioid epidemic through her harm reduction program, visit here.
