Avian Flu Diary: COCA Call Today: HHS and CDC Recommendations to Expand the Use of Naloxone

https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/naloxone/index.html

#14,310

In the CDC's August Vital Signs briefing, researchers reported that far too little naloxone - a drug that can quickly reverse an opioid overdose - is being dispensed in many areas of the country that need it the most.

I can attest that as a paramedic in the 1970s - when heroin was the addict's drug of choice - it was one of the most frequently used items from our (limited) drug kit, and it saved a lot of lives.

Today the CDC will hold a follow-up COCA Call, providing clinicians with the HHS and CDC recommendations for the prescribing or dispensing of naloxone to patients at risk for opioid overdose.

HHS and CDC Recommendations to Expand the Use of Naloxone—A Life-saving, yet Underutilized Drug for Reversing Opioid Overdose

= Free Continuing Education

Date: Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Time: 2:00pm-3:00pm (Eastern Time)

Instructions for Obtaining Continuing Education (CE)
To receive continuing education (CE) for WC2922-091719 – (Webcast) Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Calls/Webinars – COCA Call: HHS and CDC Recommendations to Expand the Use of Naloxone—A Life-saving, yet Underutilized Drug for Reversing Opioid Overdose, September 17, 2019, please visit TCEO and follow these 9 Simple Steps by October 21, 2019

To receive continuing education (CE) for WD2922-091719 – Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Calls/Webinars – COCA Call: HHS and CDC Recommendations to Expand the Use of Naloxone—A Life-saving, yet Underutilized Drug for Reversing Opioid Overdose, September 17, 2019 (Web on Demand), please visit TCEO and follow these 9 Simple Steps by October 22, 2021.

Overview
About 48,000 drug overdose deaths involved opioids in the United States in 2017. Naloxone is a life-saving drug that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Despite recent progress in naloxone dispensing, naloxone remains under-prescribed and underused, often in a variable pattern. Healthcare providers and pharmacists play a critical role in ensuring patients receive naloxone, as they have a frontline view and can make progress in prescribing and dispensing of naloxone. The 2016 CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain recommends that healthcare providers consider prescribing or dispensing naloxone to patients at risk for overdose.

During this COCA Call, clinicians will learn about HHS and CDC recommendations for the prescribing or dispensing of naloxone to patients at risk for opioid overdose.