Las Vegas Health Care Providers Cut Back On Opioid Prescriptions
It’s Harder to Get a Las Vegas Opioid Prescription from Some Local Doctors
Cutting Back on Local Las Vegas Meds for All Ages with Medication Management
Las Vegas Doctor, Costa Soteropoulos, is one physician cutting back on prescribing painkillers Over-prescribed opioids have triggered a nationwide epidemic. More than 300,000 Americans have died from opioid overdoses since 2000, and as a result, the healthcare industry is taking a closer look at the use of this addictive drug.“Dr. Soteropoulos, who practices in the National Spine & Pain Centers office in Las Vegas, says when he treats patients with backaches, spinal cord problems or other painful issues, and prescribes pain relievers that aren’t habit forming.
As an alternative to medication Soteropoulos uses spinal cord stimulation, an implant that uses a low-voltage electrical current to block the sensation of pain. "Soteropoulos believes such devices, along with other therapies, can replace the need for potent pills with some patients." He estimates that 3 percent to 10 percent of patients who visit his office “are seeking out pain medicine to sell or abuse in some way, shape or form,” he said. “We’re definitely turning away our fair share of people.”
Local hospitals are also trying to prescribe less narcotics too. “For more than two years, emergency room doctors at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas have counseled patients that opioids aren’t always the right choice, said Dr. Jayson Tappan, medical director of the emergency department. In the past, patients who came to the hospital with some sort of pain—and demanding instant relief—may have been sent home with a prescription for 20 tablets of OxyContin or Vicodin, Percodan or Percocet, all opioids. That changed to 12, then six and “now, it’s, ‘Hey, we’re just not doing it,’ ” Tappan said."
The state guidelines say that emergency room doctors shouldn’t replace pain medicine for patients who claim their pills were lost, destroyed, stolen or simply used up. An emergency room doctors should treat patients who’ve suffered from accidents or sudden illnesses, not those with ongoing aches in their heads, backs, teeth or elbows." Doctors should be sympathetic to patients who are in acute pain from emergency issues, but not treat chronic or subjective pain. "Doctors also routinely check the database of the Virginia Prescription Monitoring Program, which shows what medicines people are prescribed and from where. It also notes if they’ve tried to get painkillers at other hospitals."
We are glad to see there is more scrutiny over the prescribing of opioids. Doctor’s actions to reduce prescribing opioids will help decrease drug abuse in Las Vegas.” Source: http://dpbh.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/dpbhnvgov/content/Resources/opioids/DHHS-data/NevadaOpioidCrisisNeedsAssessment061818.pdf
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