Enduring CME Course: Pain Management and Opioids Adaptive Learning from NEJM Group

Activity ID

13870

Expires

October 27, 2027

Format Type

Enduring

CME Credit

10.25

Fee

$0

CME Provider: Massachusetts Medical Society

Description of CME Course

Gaps
Adverse outcomes of addiction, unintentional overdose, and death resulting from inappropriate prescribing and nonmedical use of opioid analgesics continue to contribute to the public health crisis involving opioid use disorder and overdoses. It is critical that HCPs are knowledgeable about the risks associated with opioid analgesics, as data continue to show problems associated with these medications.

Based on the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an estimated 8.7 million Americans aged 12 or older misused a prescription pain reliever in the past year ― with hydrocodone, oxycodone, and codeine products being the most reported (misused by 47%, 30%, and 26%, respectively, of those reporting any prescription pain reliever misuse). National guidelines state that opioids should be prescribed only when non-opioid options are inadequate, and the benefits of the opioids are expected to outweigh the risks in order to address the opioid addiction and reduce opioid misuse and abuse epidemic. Healthcare providers need to able to apply these guidelines while adequately managing their patients’ pain.

A 2021 analysis of the literature by the National Academy of Medicine reported gaps in clinical knowledge (40%), attitudes and biases (30%), and/or failure to use/lack of available evidence-informed tools and resources (26%). Key themes included unexplained differences in prescribing practices between groups of clinicians, the presence of harmful negative attitudes or biases held by HCPs towards patients or the interprofessional team, and reports of insufficient time/resources and health system constraints.

Educational format
Pain Management and Opioids Adaptive Learning consists of 62 case-based questions, an additional set of shorter multiple-choice questions based on the same learning points, detailed feedback that covers the entire FDA blueprint, plus over 50 learning resources and tools in key topic areas. The material is more digestible than traditional forms of learning and utilizes principles of microlearning and instructional design and provides a repository of tools for use in patient care settings and tools to support learning such as bookmarking, notetaking and distractor cross-out functionality. Pain Management and Opioids Adaptive Learning is centered on case-based problem- solving. As learners review each medical case and answer the associated multiple-choice question, rate their confidence level, and read the associated feedback, they are required to actively synthesize complex information and concepts. Case vignettes are intended to improve learners’ knowledge, skills (competence) and performance regarding assessing pain and choosing the most appropriate pain-management strategies, including nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic options. Learners will develop best practice strategies to identify opioid use disorder, the most appropriate strategy for tapering or discontinuing opioid analgesics, and interventions when opioid use disorder is suspected.

Adaptive self-assessment methods are used to facilitate learner engagement and the delivery of personalized, case-based learning. Spaced repetition of learner responses, confidence level and tracking of the most challenging learning objectives are tailored to and displayed to each learner until they achieve mastery which simulates performance in practice.
Audience

This CE activity is designed for all US-based physicians, HCPs and pharmacists.
Credits include AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™, AAFP, AANP, AAPA, ACPE

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