While we’ve still got a ways to go for lowering the barriers to care for substance misuse, it wouldn’t be right to say we haven’t made strides in the right direction, especially with opioid use disorder (OUD).
Shows like Netflix’s “Painkiller” and Hulu’s “Dopesick” remind us of the issues that the opioid crisis has caused for patients, we’ve come a long way in the past few years.
-Increased telehealth accessibility has made making appointments with specialists much easier and more convenient
-Access to medication-assisted treatment has grown, which has been one of the more effective methods for curbing OUD
-Insurance coverage for OUD is becoming more robust and comprehensive
In addition to these factors, one of the most important shifts in substance misuse treatment has been the starting of addiction treatment with more immediacy.
In the past, it wasn’t uncommon for patients who’d suffered non-lethal overdoses to leave the emergency room hours after.
Now, we’re seeing treatment start sooner after their discharge, with some hospitals even bringing patients directly to rehabilitation centers.
Even though there are still some barriers to access and some stigma associated with substance misuse, it’s important to acknowledge the progress that is happening, even if it’s slower than we’d like for it to be.
#OpioidCrisis #SubstanceMisuse #MedicationAssistedTreatment #Telehealth #MedicalCosts
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