Change In Prescription Practices May Be Paying Off In War Against Opioid Crisis, Survey Finds
“Ten out of 19 emergency departments said that they had significantly reduced their prescribing since we started our safe prescribing guidelines," said Dr. Roneet Lev, chief of emergency medicine at San Diego's Scripps Mercy Hospital.
KPBS:
Opioid Epidemic Prompting Changes In San Diego Emergency Rooms
For years, hospital emergency rooms have been seen as easy marks for people who are doctor shopping for opioids like Vicodin and Oxycontin. But that perception may be changing. An effort aimed at getting local emergency room physicians to change their prescribing practices appears to be bearing fruit. (Goldberg, 11/9)
In other news on the epidemic —
Capital Public Radio:
California Health Officials Tackle Opioid Crisis With Help From Counties
President Donald Trump declared the opioid epidemic a national public health crisis last month, but didn’t specify any new funding to combat the problem. California health officials say their efforts to reduce overdose deaths are already in full swing. (Caiola, 11/9)
Desert Sun:
For Many Palm Springs Homeless, Heroin Comes Before Food And Water. The Problem Is Getting Worse.
Much of the national epidemic has been concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest. California counted 1,966 opioid overdose deaths in 2015, few enough to have one of the lowest opioid death rates of any state, according to an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. In Riverside County, a large stretch of Southern California that includes Palm Springs and more than 2.3 million people, overdose deaths involving heroin have risen over the past decade, according to a Desert Sun analysis of county data derived from death reports. In 2005, 21 death records mentioned heroin. In 2013, the count surpassed 50 for the first time and remained that high for at least two more years. (Newkirk, 11/9)