Event Registration - American Society for Pain Management Nurses
Pain and Opioids: Pandora's Box
1/1/2025 - 1/31/2030Event Description
Opioids are safe and effective therapies for people with serious illness, however, their use has become challenging. The prevalence of people surviving serious illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, neurological disorders and others has increased due to extraordinary advances in treatment, yet many of these individuals experience severe, persistent pain. Additionally, comparable rates of Americans report high impact pain. Overlying these trends, are the many numbers of individuals who have died from opioid overdose deaths. Discerning when and how to use opioids has become challenging and people with pain often feel stigmatized, particularly those from marginalized or underserved populations. This presentation will outline current challenges in providing safe and effective management of opioid therapy, along with historical perspectives that illustrate our fraught history with these agents. Evidence based practices will be addressed as published in recent clinical practice guidelines. Questions regarding when to use opioids, which opioid to select, dosing recommendations and how and why to rotate will be clarified. Managing adverse effects will also be included. Finally, a growing population of people treated with long-term opioid therapy is finding access to specialist prescribers difficult. Often referred to as “legacy” patients, they are often declined treatment by practices that will no longer prescribe opioids. The consequence is an increase in mental health crises and overdose events. Optimal treatment approaches involve multidisciplinary interventions that balance pain control while reducing harm.