Surgeon General Addiction Report

It is fair to say that everyone in a position to prescribe opioid narcotics can have a hand in the reversal of an epidemic they had a hand in creating. One could easily argue that, next to America’s involvement in foreign conflicts, opioid addiction is our nation’s number one concern thus far in 21st Century. We all can play a role in ending this deadly epidemic, and together we can recover as a nation.

This fall, the U.S. Surgeon General will release a report on substance use, addiction, and health. The Surgeon General first began issuing reports in 1964, according to Medscape. The release of the report, will be followed by a letter to 1.1 million prescribers this spring, calling upon them to increase their efforts in stemming the tide of this deadly epidemic. Those receiving the letter are in various fields, and will include:

• Physicians
• Nurse Practitioners
• Dentists

"I believe that there could not be a more important time to mobilize the medical community again," Dr Murthy told a gathering of the Association of Health Care Journalists. The report will “bring together the best available science on prevention, treatment, and recovery, so we can equip our healthcare providers with the tools they need to take the best possible care of patients.”

The report and letter will be a call-to-action for all opioid prescribers, the article reports. Prescribers will be urged to:

• Identify At Risk Patients
• Refer Patients to Addiction Treatment
• Fully Educate Patients About Opioid Risks
• Help Replace Stigma With Treatment

“We cannot heal as a nation without compassion,” said Murthy. “Compassion is what allows us to stop judging and to start helping, and to step beyond our own bias and offer people support.”