J
oy Doll, OTD, OTR/L, executive director of the Center for Interprofessional Practice, Education and Research (CIPER) helped co-author the National Academies of Practice Commitment Statement on Countering the U.S. Opioid Epidemic. Read it below.
The National Academies of Practice (NAP) joins the National Academy of Medicine and over 50 organizations to form the Action Collaborative on Countering the U.S. Opioid Epidemic. Governmental and regulatory entities, non-profit organizations, higher education, and healthcare entities have come together to respond to the current Opioid Epidemic gripping our nation. NAP, a non-profit organization founded in 1981, advises governmental bodies on our healthcare delivery system. Distinguished practitioners, scholars, and public policy fellows are elected by their peers from fourteen health professions including Audiology, Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Optometry, Osteopathic Medicine, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Podiatric Medicine, Psychology, Social Work, Speech-Language Pathology and Veterinary Medicine. NAP’s Vision is to lead and exemplify interprofessional healthcare that promotes and preserves health and well-being and is dedicated to affordable, accessible and coordinated quality healthcare for all. The World Health Organization defines interprofessional collaborative care as “when multiple health workers from different professional backgrounds work together with patients, families, carers, and communities to deliver the highest quality of care.” We believe that healthcare practice with an interprofessional foundation focused on the whole person is essential for effectively addressing the opioid epidemic. Patient multisystem conditions necessitate coordinated and comprehensive delivery of interprofessional collaborative care from multiple professions. The current opioid epidemic affects each of NAP’s fourteen health professions. Members’ collective knowledge, expertise, and experience contributes to an understanding of the impact of the epidemic on our healthcare system and the patients and families we serve. NAP is committed to developing and advancing interprofessional education with a collaborative approach to prevent, identify, manage, and treat pain and opioid use disorder, as well as interprofessional management of the opioid use disorder and drug-drug interactions. Advocating for changes to reimbursement and regulation that support this interprofessional, person-centered approach to clinical care is essential. NAP recognizes the necessity of a team-oriented person-centered approach toward patient management and is committed to addressing the opioid epidemic through professional development, education and engagement in health policy. This includes development of educational modules focused on an interprofessional and comprehensive, whole person and systemic care approach to treat pain and opioid use disorder throughout the lifespan. NAP advocates for the development of health care regulation and policy to support eradication of this devastating national crisis. We embrace the development, implementation, and evaluation of an interprofessional pan of care including raising awareness, assessment, referral to treatment, and nonopioid options for treatment of pain. NAP is committed to new and ongoing research and education on interprofessional evidence-based clinical practices for the management and treatment of pain, identification and prevention of opioid misuse and addressing the opioid use disorder and supports the expansion of Opioid Stewardship Programs. In summary, NAP is committed to addressing the opioid epidemic through an interprofessional approach to providing person-centered evidence-based care, through professional development, education and engagement in heath policy and welcomes opportunities to collaborate with other organizations having similar aspirations and goal alignment.
