Medical Malpractice Insurance News

MLMIC shares guidance for interacting with patients who are hostile, drug seeking or noncompliant.

Responsibly prescribing medications, identifying patients with opioid use disorders, initiating conversations and developing treatment plans may help physicians handle drug-seeking patients while mitigating risk.

New research indicates there are not significant differences in clinical outcomes or overall experiences between post-surgical patients who receive narcotics and those treated with over-the-counter NSAIDs.

A troubling percentage of long-COVID patients are using opioids to address the scope of symptoms that can cripple one’s health for months after a diagnosis.

Experts say patient-centric opioid intervention before discharge from the hospital can cut overall opioid intake, while still ensuring a patient is satisfied and their pain is properly managed.

MLMIC encourages policyholders to review these important Risk Management Checklists on opioid management, including guidance on managing patients with chronic pain and managing drug seeking patients.

The FDA cautions that a number of websites are illegally selling unauthorized opioids that may be counterfeit, contaminated, expired or otherwise unsafe.

NYS Public Health Law requires that a written treatment plan be placed in the patient’s medical record when a practitioner prescribes opioids for pain management for longer than three months or past the time of normal tissue healing.

NPR and Fierce Healthcare recently raised the question, will hospitals be held accountable if patients become addicted to opioids? According to the articles, overprescription of opioids contributes to the current crisis, and many physicians don’t understand how quickly addiction can happen.

New York State requires all narcotic prescribers to attend three hours of continuing medical education (CME) that address specifically designated aspects of prescribing controlled substances. These CMEs must be completed prior to July 1, 2017.