The article, “Co-use of Opioid Medications and Alcohol Prevention Study (COAPS),” has been published in SAj.
In this commentary, the authors state that while there is limited research in the field regarding the various dimensions of co-use of alcohol and opioid medication, particularly related to co-use and levels of severity, their research has shown 20% to 30% of community pharmacy patients receiving opioid pain medications are engaged in co-use. Co-use of alcohol and opioid medications is a significant risk factor for opioid-related overdose. Community pharmacy is a valuable yet underutilized resource and setting for addressing the US opioid epidemic, with an untapped potential for identification of and intervention for risks associated with co-use of alcohol and opioids
In the AUTHORS’ OWN WORDS, they relate the importance of their work:
“Notwithstanding the clear need for intervention services for co-use of opioids and alcohol and the potential impact of engaging community pharmacies, no current models exist for deployment in these settings. Therefore, our team has targeted adaptation of an intervention we previously developed for opioid medication misuse (called Brief Intervention-Medication Therapy Management [BI-MTM]). This adapted intervention would therefore be prepared to address co-use of opioid medications and alcohol.”
“Among the highest-risk behaviors for those taking opioid medications is co-use with alcohol. Conducting this study is critical to the field given that, to our knowledge, there are no existing pharmacist-led intervention to specifically target co-use of alcohol and opioid medications. Further, a study aiming to develop and test an intervention while gleaning an understanding of the organizational context of implementation of such an intervention has not heretofore been conducted. Results of this study will create an opportunity to leverage community pharmacists’ unique expertise in medication management, including medication interactions and safety. These results will further address a significant gap in the literature regarding the untapped potential for community pharmacist interventions that build on their trusting relationships with patients.”