Increasing Equity in Pain Management, Substance Use Disorder Treatment, and Linkages to CARE

STRATEGY: Use an Integrative Approach to Pain Management

High-quality, equitable, patient-centered pain management that mitigates risk for opioid use disorder is a priority for the U.S.; however, patients often encounter fragmented systems of care and limited non-opioid options to treat their pain. Fortunately, there is a growing evidence base for non-opioid pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for pain management. 18 Health centers can build capacity to offer an array of pain management options for patients, and create partnerships in the community to fill gaps in services. To ease the opioid crisis and bring about optimal and equitable health for patients, a task force convened by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommends that healthcare organizations use a biopsychosocial, multidisciplinary, multimodal approach to chronic pain within 5 treatment categories: 19 ❚ Medications: Opioids and non-opioids, such as acetaminophen, NSAIDs, anticonvulsants, musculoskeletal agents, antidepressants, and antianxiety medications ❚ Restorative therapies: Treatments by physical and occupational therapists, such as therapeutic exercise, cold and heat, therapeutic ultrasound 18 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Pain Management Best Practices Inter Agency Task Force Report: Updates, gaps, inconsistencies, and recommendations ; 2019. 19 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Pain Management Best Practices Inter Agency Task Force Report: Updates, gaps, inconsistencies, and recommendations ; 2019. Best practices for integrative chronic pain management

Sharad Kohli describes the start-up of the Integrative Pain Management Program (IPMP).

Sharad Kohli gives advice to other health centers that are interested in building an integrative model of care for pain management.

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