Survey highlights impact of opioid shortages in veterinary medicineSeptember 17, 2018A nationwide survey conducted by Wedgewood Pharmacy aims to show the unintended consequences for veterinary medicine caused by the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) efforts to address the national opioid crisis. To address the misuse and diversion of opioids by people, the DEA has proposed an average 10 percent decrease in the 2019 manufacturing quotas for six frequently abused opioids, including five key Class II opioid drugs commonly used by veterinarians. When supplies of these drugs are limited, manufacturers and distributors give preference to allocating supplies for use in human health, creating shortages for veterinary medical practitioners, Wedgewood said in a statement. Key survey findings: In 2017, anywhere from 27 to 73 percent of veterinary professionals have had difficulty obtaining necessary supplies of five opioids (hydromorphone, morphine, fentanyl, hydrocodone, and oxymorphone) they consider "important to your practice and to your patients' health" by 50 to 80 percent of respondents. Shortages of these opioids have led to the use of less effective, non-narcotic alternatives such as NSAIDS (83 percent), increased patient suffering (71 percent), use of a local anesthetic (49 percent), postponed procedures (26 percent), and patient deaths (3 percent) 88 percent of respondents "rarely" …
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How vets can help with opioid crisisMay 24, 2017In 2015, 33,000 people in the United States died from opioid overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—quadruple the number since 1999, noted Courtney Leonard, a health communication specialist with the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
Illinois vet college releases video teaching officers how to treat police dogs who overdose on opioidsMarch 15, 2017The opioid crisis sweeping the United States isn’t just killing people, it’s killing dogs too. Specifically police and other working dogs, who are exposed to deadly drugs while searching for them. Just like people, the dogs can overdose and die unless they receive immediate life-saving treatment.
N.H. veterinarians object to prescription drug monitoring program mandateDecember 5, 2016The opioid addiction epidemic has been ravaging communities around the country. To combat it, 49 states have passed Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMP) to help address this issue.
More ways to minimize opioid relianceSeptember 27, 2016Last month’s column explored the epidemic of addiction to prescription opioids in people and how veterinary medical professionals may be at more risk of becoming addicted than the general population, considering the access we have to controlled substances and the stress of day-to-day work.
Opting out of opioidsAugust 24, 2016All too often we hear about celebrities such as Prince falling victim to opioid overdose.1 The story goes that Prince suffered from chronic pain and took the fentanyl on which he overdosed to “try to control the constant, excruciating pain from damaged hips.”2
