-
Courtesy Photo
-
University of Vermont Medical Center
University of Vermont Medical Center doctors have dramatically reduced the amount of opiates they prescribe, the hospital announced Thursday.
In the third quarter of 2018, physicians issued 44 percent fewer prescriptions for more than 50 pills than they did in the same quarter in 2017. Since 2016, the medical center has registered a 71 percent decline in those prescriptions, the hospital said.
State health officials and law enforcement leaders
have urged the medical community to curb prescribed opiates as Vermonters struggle with abuse of the drugs, and fatal overdoses have reached record highs.
The hospital has instituted voluntary guidelines for maximum daily doses, tracks physicians' prescribing rates and shares information about those rates with physicians.
“Doctors are having real conversations with their patients about treatment for their pain, and talking about possible alternatives to opiates,” said Stephen Leffler, chief population health and quality officer for the University of Vermont Health Network.
Comments (6)
Showing 1-6 of 6
Comments are closed.
Since 2014, Seven Days has allowed readers to comment on all stories posted on our website. While we’ve appreciated the suggestions and insights, the time has come to shut them down — at least temporarily.
While we champion free speech, facts are a matter of life and death during the coronavirus pandemic, and right now Seven Days is prioritizing the production of responsible journalism over moderating online debates between readers.
To criticize, correct or praise our reporting, please send us a letter to the editor. Or send us a tip. We’ll check it out and report the results.
Online comments may return when we have better tech tools for managing them. Thanks for reading.