Northwestern Health Sciences University awarded grant

Northwestern Health Sciences University’s Center for Healthcare Innovation and Policy (CHIP) received national opioid settlement grant funds from the Minnesota Opioid Epidemic Response Advisory Council to develop and distribute online continuing education courses for healthcare professionals.

The team, led by Michele Maiers, DC, PhD, MPH, Andrea Albertson, DC, and Chuck Sawyer, DC, will create two courses, noted a NWHSU press release. One will educate prescribing healthcare providers on nonpharmacologic pain management alternatives, including chiropractic care, acupuncture, massage therapy, exercise, yoga and health coaching. The second will provide complementary and integrative healthcare (CIH) providers information on early detection and intervention for substance and opioid use disorders.

These courses will be available at no cost to Minnesota healthcare providers, with the goal of further reducing prescribing of clinically inappropriate opioids while still addressing patients’ pain management needs.

Funding for this two-year project comes from a national opioid settlement grant.

Educating opioid prescribers on evidence-based alternatives

Research supports a range of nonpharmacologic treatments (NPTs) for pain, including chiropractic care, acupuncture, massage therapy and movement-based therapies. Clinical practice guidelines recommend NPTs as effective evidence-based alternatives to opioids.

However, prescribing providers report they often lack knowledge about the effectiveness of NPTs or are not sure how to refer patients to or successfully comanage pain patients with NPT providers.

“This may contribute to low utilization of these high-value interventions and place individuals at greater risk for opioid prescription,” said Albertson, a research and policy associate at NWHSU.

Screening and intervention

CIH providers commonly deliver NPT for patients with pain. In Minnesota, an estimated 5,000 CIH providers practice in rural and urban areas. However, opioid reduction strategies often exclude CIH providers since they do not prescribe medications.

These providers are well-positioned to screen, recognize and facilitate referrals for prevention and healthcare services due to their whole-person approach, frequency of patient visits and accessibility, particularly in rural areas.

Despite this, training in substance misuse screening and intervention remains insufficient among CIH providers.

“Given the association between pain conditions and opioid use, an important gap exists for CIH providers to more effectively screen, refer and comanage patients with substance use disorders,” said Maiers, project lead and executive director of research and innovation at NWHSU.

Statewide partnerships for opioid settlement grant funded efforts

The CHIP team has secured support from state health associations representing prescribing and non-prescribing professions. These partnerships are critical for distributing the free online courses to healthcare providers.

For more information, visit nwhealth.edu.

About Northwestern Health Sciences University

We are Northwestern Health Sciences University (NWHSU). We are a mission- and vision-driven university, preparing the next generation of healthcare professionals to not only deliver, but also advance health care. NWHSU takes a person-centered approach to health education and practice to help people live happier, healthier, better lives. We offer a diverse range of evidence-informed programs and experiences across the healthcare spectrum — from our roots in chiropractic to acupuncture, massage therapy and undergraduate health sciences. Whether you’re a student considering a career in health sciences, a practitioner looking to enhance your skills or an individual seeking care at one of our multidisciplinary clinics, NWHSU welcomes you.