Lightning Talk

Addressing the Opioid Epidemic Through Interprofessional Education

Thursday, September 26, 2024, 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm CDT
Some experience with IPE
opioid epidemicnaloxone trainingIPE ethics education

The opioid epidemic is a current public health emergency. Opioid overdoses caused over 100,000 deaths in the U.S. in 2022 alone and continues to rise. Addressing this epidemic takes a collaborative and interprofessional approach. At the University of Colorado (CU) Anschutz Medical Campus, students from dental medicine, medicine, undergraduate nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, and physician assistant programs engage in the Interprofessional Healthcare Ethics & Health Equity (IPHE) course that brings together over 650 students to learn about healthcare ethics and equity by examining the opioid epidemic. The course provides information and context about substance use and mental health, examines ethical dilemmas and inequity in the treatment of substance use disorders, and explores interprofessional strategies to address the opioid crisis. Central to the course is a comprehensive examination of the healthcare journey of a patient who develops opioid dependency and experiences a series of increasingly difficult healthcare encounters. In interprofessional teams, students use an ethical analysis method to analyze ethical and health equity issues and identify interprofessional interventions and preventative strategies to address the complex healthcare issues that emerge in the opioid epidemic.


In conjunction with the course, the CU Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education collaborated across campus and community organizations including the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse, CU Office of Student Affairs and Health Promotion, and CU School of Pharmacy to provide interprofessional Narcan (naloxone) trainings following the IPHE course sessions that focused on opioid dependency. Participants were trained to identify signs and symptoms of opioid overdose, understand the mechanisms of how nasal naloxone reverses an opioid overdose, and administer nasal naloxone. Participants received naloxone kits at the completion of the training to use in their own communities. This approach was relevant to all health professions and directly reinforced key course content by empowering students with tangible clinical skills to address opioid overdoses now and in their future practice.


This lightning talk will provide a brief overview of course design and pedagogical innovations and the process of building collaborative partnerships across university and community organizations to provide interprofessional naloxone trainings. We will review data from student evaluations and pre/post surveys demonstrating that these trainings resulted in changes in attitudes and beliefs around substance use and the opioid epidemic, improvement in knowledge and skill acquisition, and increased appreciation of and skills in interprofessional collaboration as a means of addressing key ethics and health equity dilemmas in the opioid epidemic.

Accreditation Details

In support of improving patient care, this activity is planned and implemented by The National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education Office of Interprofessional Continuing Professional Development (National Center OICPD). The National Center OICPD is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

As a Jointly Accredited Provider, the National Center is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. The National Center maintains responsibility for this course. Social workers completing this course receive continuing education credits.

The National Center OICPD (JA#: 4008105) is approved by the Board of Certification, Inc. to provide continuing education to Athletic Trainers (ATs).

This activity was planned by and for the healthcare team, and learners will receive Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) credit for learning and change.

Text reads "Office of Interprofessional Continuing Professional Development" and shown are logos for the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education,
                    the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, and the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy.
 

Physicians: The National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education designates this live activity for AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with their participation.

Physician Assistants: The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) accepts credit from organizations accredited by the ACCME.

Nurses: Participants will be awarded contact hours of credit for attendance at this workshop.

Nurse Practitioners: The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Program (AANPCP) accepts credit from organizations accredited by the ACCME and ANCC.

Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians: This activity is approved for contact hours.

Athletic Trainers: This program is eligible for Category A hours/CEUs. ATs should claim only those hours actually spent in the educational program.

Social Workers: As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the National Center is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. The National Center maintains responsibility for this course. Social workers completing this course receive continuing education credits.

IPCE: This activity was planned by and for the healthcare team, and learners will receive Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) credits for learning and change.

Learners can claim CE credit by completing the Daily Evaluation.