Chevan J1, Heath A2
1Springfield College, Physical Therapy, Springfield, United States, 2Simmons College, Physical Therapy, Boston, United States
Background: According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime World Drug Report, opioid use is responsible for 76% of deaths attributable to a drug use disorder. In North America, Fentanyl is the primary problem; in Africa and Asia, the drug Tramadol prevails. Fentanyl and Tramadol are used to treat painful conditions; conditions that are also treated by physical therapists. The US National Academies of Science report provides a roadmap to professions to respond to the “opioid crisis” including recommendations to develop curricula targeted to the treatment of pain, and that “require[d] and provide[d] basic training in the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD).” Physical therapy professional-level education already includes pain science, pain measurement and assessment, pharmacology and pharmacologic intervention. Additional content and knowledge related to the opioid crisis are needed.
Purpose: The purpose of this project is to describe how a group of educators in one US state developed core competencies for students in response to the opioid emergency and, to present those competencies as a model for educators globally.
Methods: In Massachusetts, the Governor's Opioid 1Addiction Working Group developed competencies on the prevention and management of prescription drug misuse for medical, dental, physician assistant, advanced practice nursing, and social work education. The physical therapy program directors developed a core principles document as a model for physical therapy education. The starting point for the model was a recognition of the role the profession should play in secondary and tertiary prevention, a role that engages the profession with patients who have painful conditions, patients who have painful conditions and OUD, and patients who have OUD as a primary diagnosis. The principles ensure that physical therapist graduates will have the skills and knowledge to provide care to a variety of patient populations in a way that minimizes the social stigma and biases that individuals in some of these populations regularly face.
Results: The "Core Principles for the Education of Physical Therapy Professionals in the Context of the U.S. Opioid Emergency" provides a model for the education of DPT students and outlines the commitment that the 8 programs in the state have made to educating students. Specific curriculum modifications were left to each program. In conjunction with the state chapter of the APTA, training was developed and offered to students and their clinical instructors in pharmacologic assisted recovery for opioid overdose. The education community also participated in advocacy for the profession by presenting the document and information on the role of physical therapists to the state's executive government and Department of Public Health.
Conclusion(s): The Core Principles provides a roadmap for educational programs. Educators can assume a role of leadership in the opioid crisis and ensure that students and clinical instructors are prepared for care provision and advocacy.
Implications: Physical therapists should partner in managing the opioid crisis on a global level. This partnership starts with the education of students and requires physical therapists to have sufficient knowledge and skills to work with governmental health organizations to change prescribing and use patterns.
Keywords: Education, Opiates
Funding acknowledgements: None
Purpose: The purpose of this project is to describe how a group of educators in one US state developed core competencies for students in response to the opioid emergency and, to present those competencies as a model for educators globally.
Methods: In Massachusetts, the Governor's Opioid 1Addiction Working Group developed competencies on the prevention and management of prescription drug misuse for medical, dental, physician assistant, advanced practice nursing, and social work education. The physical therapy program directors developed a core principles document as a model for physical therapy education. The starting point for the model was a recognition of the role the profession should play in secondary and tertiary prevention, a role that engages the profession with patients who have painful conditions, patients who have painful conditions and OUD, and patients who have OUD as a primary diagnosis. The principles ensure that physical therapist graduates will have the skills and knowledge to provide care to a variety of patient populations in a way that minimizes the social stigma and biases that individuals in some of these populations regularly face.
Results: The "Core Principles for the Education of Physical Therapy Professionals in the Context of the U.S. Opioid Emergency" provides a model for the education of DPT students and outlines the commitment that the 8 programs in the state have made to educating students. Specific curriculum modifications were left to each program. In conjunction with the state chapter of the APTA, training was developed and offered to students and their clinical instructors in pharmacologic assisted recovery for opioid overdose. The education community also participated in advocacy for the profession by presenting the document and information on the role of physical therapists to the state's executive government and Department of Public Health.
Conclusion(s): The Core Principles provides a roadmap for educational programs. Educators can assume a role of leadership in the opioid crisis and ensure that students and clinical instructors are prepared for care provision and advocacy.
Implications: Physical therapists should partner in managing the opioid crisis on a global level. This partnership starts with the education of students and requires physical therapists to have sufficient knowledge and skills to work with governmental health organizations to change prescribing and use patterns.
Keywords: Education, Opiates
Funding acknowledgements: None
Topic: Education; Pain & pain management
Ethics approval required: No
Institution: Springfield College
Ethics committee: IRB
Reason not required: Standard educational practice not involving human subjects
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
