The BC Centre on Substance Use (BCCSU) has partnered with UBC’s Faculty of Medicine to launch a new learning program designed to provide opioid addiction treatment support for new treatment prescribers in British Columbia.
The Provincial Opioid Addiction Treatment Support Program (POATSP) combines an online learning program with one-on-one, in-person preceptorships for all health care professionals prescribing opioid agonist therapies (OAT) to treat opioid addiction, including methadone, buprenorphine/naloxone, and slow-release oral morphine.
Cheyenne Johnson, Director of Clinical Activities and Development at the BCCSU.
“In the midst of an overdose emergency, it’s critical that health care professionals are equipped and trained to provide the best and most effective care for opioid addiction,” says Cheyenne Johnson, Director of Clinical Activities and Development at the BCCSU. “Evidence-based training in combination with clinical practice will ensure prescribers are well-positioned to provide safe, effective, and compassionate treatment. Additionally, this program will improve access and provincial capacity for opioid agonist education for health professionals across the province.”
Evidence has demonstrated that OAT are the most effective treatment of opioid use disorder and related harms in terms of treatment retention, reducing risk of overdose, and suppression of illicit opioid use. 1,125 B.C. physicians prescribed OAT (437 prescribed methadone maintenance and 1,052 prescribed buprenorphine/naloxone) during the period of July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017. This represents a 100% increase since June 2015; however, more prescribers are still needed across the province to address province-wide opioid use disorder.
Bruce Forster is leading the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Education Innovation (OEI), which worked with BCCSU and UBC CPD to develop the new program.
Currently, in order to prescribe methadone, a section 56 exemption of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act is required. Completion of the new POATSP is a requirement in order to apply for this exemption. While methadone is an important mainstay in the management of opioid addiction, the BCCSU Guidelines for the Clinical Management of Opioid Use Disorder recommend buprenorphine/naloxone as first-line pharmacotherapy for treating opioid addiction. The comprehensive POATSP covers training for both buprenorphine/naloxone, methadone, and slow-release oral morphine.
Included in this new program are enhanced clinical training opportunities via a provincial network of preceptors. The preceptorship pairs trainees with an experienced practitioner who provides supervision during clinical practice, while the online component offers several online learning modules, and online forums which were developed in partnership with the UBC Faculty of Medicine’s Continuing Professional Development (CPD) unit and Office of Education Innovation.
“We are deeply committed to helping stem the tide of this public health emergency and strongly believe that equipping health care providers with continued training and evidence-based educational resources is fundamental,” says Roger Wong, Executive Associate Dean, Education at UBC’s Faculty of Medicine. “The development of this new opioid addiction treatment support program represents an important step forward in supporting the many health care providers who are on the front lines in communities across our province.”
Roger Wong, Executive Associate Dean, Education
The program is fully accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Continuing Medical Education (CACME) and is available to all health care providers regardless of whether they are seeking an exemption or CME.
As of June 5, 2017, the BCCSU is responsible for the education and clinical care guidance activities for all health care professional prescribing medications to treat opioid addiction. Methadone, buprenorphine/naloxone, and slow-release oral morphine are now all fully covered under BC PharmaCare’s Psychiatric Medications Plan (Plan G).
BCCSU is still recruiting opioid agonist treatment preceptors across the province. Those interested should contact Amanda Giesler, project coordinator, at agiesler@cfenet.ubc.ca.
A list of opioid agonist treatment clinics in B.C. that are accepting new patients can be found here.
For more information about the Provincial Opioid Addiction Treatment Support Program, visit www.bccsu.ca.