The academic nursing community has been taking part in ongoing efforts nationwide to address prescription drug and opioid misuse, and the University of Houston (UH) School of Nursing has decided to join the cause. By incorporating new prescription guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), UH hopes its new curriculum will help lessen prescription drug abuse for chronic pain patients.
As reported by the CDC, deaths caused by overdose from prescription opioids have quadrupled since 1999, causing new recommendations to be issued for prescribing these kinds of medications. The UH School of Nursing is just one of 191 nursing schools that offer advanced practice registered nursing (APRN) programs who will be joining the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) initiative that pledges to educate future nurse practitioners on safe opioid prescription practices as designated by new CDC guidelines.
With more than 2.1 million people in the US struggling with opioid pain medicine related substance abuse, it was necessary to address this public health issue and establish new guidelines. According to the CDC, more than 165,000 people in the US died from overdoses related to prescription opioids from 1999 to 2014, at least half of all opioid-related overdose deaths. Because pain management is a complex issue, there are several factors that contribute to opioid overuse and misuse, not just prescribing habits. Students at UH will be educated on issues surrounding opioid abuse, as well as non-pharmacological and pharmacological methodologies for managing acute and chronic pain across a patient’s lifespan.
The UH School of Nursing is enthusiastic about joining this cause, knowing that opioid abuse is an increasing public health issue that nurse practitioners can help alleviate through education on current standards. APRN students at UH are taught how to write prescriptions, and the School of Nursing takes this commitment seriously, ensuring students receive appropriate knowledge and specifications for how to prescribe these kinds of medications. Using the updated CDC guidelines to augment existing requirements, students will learn how to properly prescribe opioids and best practices for preventing abuse and overdose of prescription opioids.
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