Kaiser Health News (8/25, Pattani) reports, “A recent report from the Legal Action Center and the Bloomberg American Health Initiative found that despite widespread consensus on the importance of addiction treatment in the” emergency department (ED) “and an unprecedented rise in overdose deaths, many hospitals fail to screen for substance use, offer medications to treat opioid use disorder or connect patients to follow-up care.” The report also found that “many patients who don’t receive those services die shortly after discharge or within a year of their” visit to the ED. Now, “a growing number of emergency” departments and “health professionals are trying to change that by developing new approaches to address the missed treatment opportunity in” EDs. The article details programs in California, Tennessee, New York and North Carolina.
Related Links:
— “From Uber Rides to Patient Advocates: What It Takes to Increase ER Addiction Treatment “Aneri Pattani, Kaiser Health News, August 25, 2021