The battle against opioid use disorder (OUD) in healthcare settings is getting a leg up, thanks to the work coming out of The Ohio State University. In a study published in the journal Psychological Services, researchers from Ohio State laid out a pretty clear game plan to improve patient care for individuals grappling with OUD—a problem that has been notoriously tough to tackle, given the high barriers to accessing medication-based treatment for the disease.
An associate professor at Ohio State’s College of Public Health, Tory Hogan, highlighted that a mere fraction of U.S. patients with OUD actually receives medication as a treatment option. This shortfall is, in part, because of the significant barriers to access and the complex nature of their health struggles, according to a statement obtained by Ohio State News. It's been a rough road for those seeking help through medication-based treatment like buprenorphine and methadone that have traditionally been confined to dedicated opioid treatment programs, standing apart from other healthcare services.
Seeing the divide, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center took on the challenge back in 2019, aiming to integrate this essential aspect of care into their emergency, inpatient, and outpatient services. Their mission was not just about dishing out meds; it was to provide a continuum of care within the health system, in hopes of improving the odds of successful treatment outcomes. Since kicking off, they've initiated treatment more than 4,900 times, and as Brian O’Rourke said in the Ohio State News, there's been some solid evidence linking medication initiation to a drop in hospital readmissions.
"The development of new care approaches for complex patient populations requires deliberate, multidisciplinary work, and the process is not always smooth or linear," noted O’Rourke. He's been deep in evaluating the program and found that kicking off medication for OUD is tied to some pretty key improvements in healthcare outcomes, like slicing down those unplanned readmission rates. And the game plan from Ohio State isn't meant to just sit pretty in their own backyard—the hope is that this can be a blueprint for other hospital systems looking to beef up their own approaches.
While this initiative marks a step in the right direction, one of the significant hurdles that keeps cropping up for healthcare organizations is the inconsistent understanding of the disease among caregivers who are not specialized in behavioral health. Educating a diverse pool of healthcare providers about the ins and outs of OUD medications is critical, as per Hogan’s commendation of the Ohio State senior leadership’s efforts in this regard. Not to mention, emergency departments are prime spots for identifying patients who could benefit from treatment as they check in for various other reasons. Hogan pointed out that "Oftentimes it’s a good inception point for people who want to change lifestyles," according to a statement obtained by Ohio State News.
Looking at the key success factors from Ohio State’s initiative, it boils down to buy-in and backing from higher-ups, coupled with solid teamwork across the board. They lobbed 11 staffers into the mix to grease the wheels, including peer supporters, care coordinators, and social workers. Hogan emphasized the importance of drawing people together regularly, flexibly navigating the team dynamics to turn the project into a winner and crank up the quality of patient care.
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