Program enables doctors to get immediate help for drug abusers

Posted 5/20/14

With 92 Rhode Islanders dying from drug overdoses since the start of 2014, the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals (BHDDH), Rhode Island …

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Program enables doctors to get immediate help for drug abusers

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With 92 Rhode Islanders dying from drug overdoses since the start of 2014, the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals (BHDDH), Rhode Island Department of Health (DOH) and Warwick’s Bridgemark Addiction Recovery Services came together yesterday to announce a pilot program offered by Bridgemark to combat this medical epidemic.

“This is the biggest public health challenge any of us have seen in a long time,” said Dr. Michael Fine, DOH director, pointing out that there have been 86 opiate-related cases (in which the majority of victims survived) since April 1, Narcan kits to combat overdoses have been used 551 times since January, and the state saw 120 deaths since December 2013. “The numbers are still pretty scary.”

In an effort to change this growing problem, Bridgemark has initiated the Physician Consult Program, which provides physicians immediate assistance for patients they believe might be at high risk for misuse of opioid medication.

Christine Harkins, president and CEO of Bridgemark, explained that her team designed the program so that any concerns regarding addiction that may come up during a visit to one’s primary care doctor can be addressed right away. The doctor can call Bridgemark to request an assessment of a patient, and an assessor can be available within an hour, at an appointment within three business days, or at their next primary care appointment. The patient can be assessed in their doctor’s office, or go to Bridgemark for the assessment.

“Almost the same as if we went into our annual exam and something about our heart beat was off,” said Harkins, comparing the program to any other doctor’s referral but being applied to the behavioral health field for the first time. “What a step forward,” she said.

Information from the assessment will be shared with the patient’s doctor, with permission, and a care plan can be made to address any addiction issue, if one does exist.

“This program is part of our ongoing effort to address that issue. We have become an example for the rest of the country in the various ways in which we are attempting to deal with the situation,” said Craig Stenning, BHDDH director.

Stenning referred to this pilot program as a step forward by connecting primary care doctors to the recovery community directly, providing early identification of those who may be prone to addiction in the doctor’s office, not the emergency room, and presenting addiction as a chronic medical condition. It allows physicians to connect their patients with their treatment options, just as they would for other diseases.

“This program invites physicians to support the work of the addiction treatment community and to utilize our specialists. That assistance will be available to each and every one of their patients to help them achieve overall health, wellness and, most importantly, recovery,” said Stenning, calling the program a seamless transfer from primary care to substance abuse treatment, helping physicians save lives and guiding patients on the path to recovery.

“The practical side of this pilot recognizes that addiction is a disease, recognizes the fact that the individual is a patient not to be subject to fear and shame, and bridges the gap between behavioral health care and primary care and values the life of each patient,” he said.

Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian was on hand for the morning press conference, held in Warwick City Hall. Both Avedisian and Stenning acknowledged that by holding the announcement in City Hall and holding other public events and discussions, the stigma and need to hide addiction issues can begin to go away.

“It’s only by talking about these issues and talking about these issues in places such as Warwick City Hall and helping the public understand them that we will ever be effective in addressing this problem,” said Avedisian.

During his career, Stenning has seen issues related to addiction kept in the dark, but the recent incidents have caused a partnership between the state and those in the recovery field. The discussion is, and should be, out in the open.

“This is no longer a disease that needs to be anonymous, that we need to stop the stigma,” said Stenning.

The mayor applauded Bridgemark for creating this innovative, first-of-its-kind program, furthering their efforts to help others.

“We need to further our efforts to combat this problem,” said Avedisian. “It’s not shocking Bridgemark would take the lead.”

Harkins said Rhode Island’s high rate of opiate-related, accidental deaths and highly qualified, dedicated medical community made it the ideal place for a program such as this.

“Combined, this is the perfect alchemy for intervention. It is the perfect start of wellness,” she said.

Fine acknowledged that it can be difficult for a primary care physician to bring up and address prescription addiction, but this program will provide a valuable link.

“You can call Bridgemark and someone on the other end will pick up the phone and the doctor can talk to the treatment provider and hand the phone over to the patient. There is really the opportunity to interact with that person with care and support so they get into treatment and stay there,” said Fine. “We have now developed this warm handoff not only for the first time in substance abuse but the first time in the referral of patients,”

Fine added that this program allows the behavioral health connection through physicians, while the recovery coaches recently placed in Rhode Island hospitals can reach those individuals suffering from addiction when an emergency arises.

Although the program is in the pilot stage, Harkins says every primary care doctor in the state is able to contact Bridgemark for this program. Down the line, the goal would be to include pediatricians to reach children and teens that may be prone to addiction.

“This is about helping physicians send that patient to another expert in the field. It’s adding another tool in the tool belt of the already competent and dedicated medical community,” said Harkins, adding that the patient’s conversation could go a number of ways and in no event would a patient be “whisked off” to a treatment facility in this program. It is the start to a conversation and possible treatment plan to bring patient awareness of the issue to the surface.

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