The Authors' Own Words Archives - Page 28 of 38

The Authors’ Own Words: Teaching residents screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) skills for alcohol use: Using chart-stimulated recall to assess curricular impact

Sep 7, 2016 by AMERSA

We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Teaching residents screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) skills for alcohol use: Using chart-stimulated recall to assess curricular impact

Maria A. Wamsley, Scott Steiger, Katherine A. Julian, Nathaniel Gleason, Patricia S. O’Sullivan, Michelle Guy, and Jason M. Satterfield

Substance Abuse Vol. 37 , Iss. 3,2016

This study is a prospective cohort study that used chart-stimulated recall to assess primary care internal medicine residents’ use of SBIRT skills and electronic tools to facilitate documentation of alcohol assessment and brief intervention.This article is timely given the increasing focus on integrating substance abuse competencies into internal medicine residency training. Given the widespread adoption of the electronic health record, decision support tools offer promise in reinforcing application of SBIRT skills. Study findings suggest that in order for resident learners to fully benefit from the use of decision support tools, these need to be better integrated into their workflow and their use should be reinforced by teaching faculty. Finally, chart-stimulated recall was a useful tool for better understanding what took place in clinical encounters and how SBIRT was being integrated into clinical practice by residents.
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Our newly released issue is now online —> July-September 2016.
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The Authors’ Own Words: Misprescribing controlled substances: An evaluation of a professional development program

Sep 2, 2016 by AMERSA

We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Misprescribing controlled substances: An evaluation of a professional development program

Charlene M. Dewey, Marine V. Ghulyan, and William H. Swiggart

Substance Abuse Vol. 37 , Iss. 3,2016

This is the first study to assess knowledge and transfer of behaviors into clinical practice using a systematic evaluation model for providers who misprescribe controlled prescription drugs. Participants in this study demonstrated improved knowledge and use of SBIRT, proper prescribing practices, appropriate monitoring, and referrals for patients with substance misuse/abuse. Improving physicians’ prescribing behaviors has significant implications on patient care and safety. Using a systematic approach and evaluation model to assess the effectiveness of continuing professional development program proved useful and valuable in assessing changes on different levels. Overall, this study helps us understand that remediation using an intensive program can be successful and physicians can change behaviors as a result of re-training.
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Our newly released issue is now online —> July-September 2016.
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The Authors’ Own Words: Journalists and substance use: A systematic literature review

Aug 23, 2016 by AMERSA

We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Journalists and substance use: A systematic literature review
Jasmine B. MacDonald, Anthony J. Saliba, and Gene Hodgins
Substance Abuse Vol. 37 , Iss. 3, 2016

In recent years there has been increased focus on the psychological risks of journalistic work, with research in trauma and related pathologies receiving funding from organisation such as the DART center. This systematic review is a valuable addition to the literature in that it synthesises the published empirical knowledge acquired to date concerning the experience of substance use amongst journalists. The authors are aware of no other review covering substance use in journalists. As such, future work assessing trauma or other pathologies in journalist samples will cite this review to develop hypotheses about the variables that are likely to be associated with psychological health and with distress, not only in substance use but also in other areas of psychology and organisational management.
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Our newly released issue is now online —> July-September 2016.
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The Authors’ Own Words: Medication-assisted treatment for opioid dependence in Twelve Step–oriented residential rehabilitation settings

Aug 22, 2016 by AMERSA

We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Medication-assisted treatment for opioid dependence in Twelve Step–oriented residential rehabilitation settings
Marc Galanter, Marvin Seppala, and Audrey Klein
Substance Abuse Vol. 37 , Iss. 3,2016

There are 3,450 residential programs in the USA that are colloquially referred to as “rehabs.” They treat a large portion of people with severe substance use disorders, often with little input regarding contemporary therapeutic techniques developed within the biomedical community. It is important for expert clinicians to be aware of this potential deficit, both in choice of facility, to which they may refer patients, and to the clinical issues they may confront when asked to follow up when a patient is discharged from residential treatment.

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Our newly released issue is now online —> July-September 2016.
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The Authors’ Own Words: Characteristics of methadone maintenance treatment patients prescribed opioid analgesics

Aug 18, 2016 by AMERSA

We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Characteristics of methadone maintenance treatment patients prescribed opioid analgesics
Matthew C. Glenn, Nancy L. Sohler, Joanna L. Starrels, Jeronimo Maradiaga, John J. Jost, Julia H. Arnsten, and Chinazo O. Cunningham
Substance Abuse Vol. 37 , Iss. 3,2016

Despite the potential iatrogenic hazards of concurrent methadone treatment and opioid analgesic prescription, the published literature has focused on illicit opioid use amongst MMT patients. Our novel findings suggest high prevalence of prescription opioid overuse amongst opioid analgesic-prescribed MMT patients, higher prevalence of HIV infection and chronic pain when compared to MMT patients not prescribed opioid analgesics, and similarly high rates of illicit substance use across all MMT patients, regardless of opioid analgesic prescription. Thus, the opioid analgesic-prescribed MMT population represents a very high risk group due to the potential for overdose. These findings highlight the complex challenges facing physicians treating patients with comorbid chronic pain and opioid dependence and adds to the body of literature calling for coordinated and integrated strategies to treating these patients.