A new report from the University of Michigan’s Center for Healthcare Research and Transformation has found that poorly coordinated care is at least partially to blame for the recent increases in accidental opioid overdoses across the country.
The study looked at data from Blue Cross Blue Shield customers who had received at least one prescription for an opioid during the course of 2013. It found that about 600 patients in Michigan had received at least 10 opioid prescriptions from at least four different providers within a three-month timeframe.
According to researchers, relatively few doctors and pharmacists have been properly checking the state’s Michigan Automated Prescription System (MAPS), which is supposed to help healthcare professionals coordinate care for patients and avoid prescriptions that could counteract one another.
Detroit Free Press: “The study recommends that doctors consider pursue alternatives to prescribing opioids. Patients can be given non-opioid pain relievers, get surgery, go to rehab and physical therapy, and even pursue massages and acupuncture. Another alternative is meditation and other relaxation techniques to cope with the pain.”
Twin Cities Public Health 