Opioid Use Disorder Public Meeting

Opioid use disorder (OUD) is perhaps one the most significant problems of our times, at least here in the United States. With over 2 million people battling with prescription opioid-related addiction and over half a million individuals abusing heroin, the need for greater access to substance use disorder services is monumental. As you can probably imagine, practically every public health agency has made opioid use disorder the focus of their attention.

What better way to address a dangerous problem than to talk to the people that the issue affects the most, individuals living with OUD. With that in mind, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) are teaming up to learn more about patients’ perspectives on OUD during a public meeting on Patient-Focused Drug Development for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD).

The agencies are interested in effects of opioids on patient health and well-being. The FDA and NIDA want to know how opiates have had the most significant impact on daily life and their experience with addiction treatment for OUD. An essential question involves the barriers that people face accessing opioid use disorder treatment.

 

Your Thoughts on Opioid Addiction

If you are struggling with opioids, or are currently in recovery from OUD, your input could be extremely beneficial to health policy makers and addiction experts. The public meeting will focus on two topics:  


Topic 1: Symptoms and daily impacts that matter most
 

1. Of all the ways that OUD negatively affects your health and well-being, which effects have the most significant impact on your daily life? Examples of negative effects may include:
• Effects of using opioids, such as confusion, constipation, or other symptoms;
• Effects of opioid withdrawal, such as nausea, diarrhea, or other symptoms;
• Effects of opioid “cravings;”
• Impacts on your ability to function in your personal or professional life;
• Emotional or social effects; and
• Other potential effects.
2. How does OUD affect daily life on the best days? On the worst days?
3. How has your OUD changed over time?
4. What worries you most about your condition?

Topic 2: Perspectives on current approaches to treatment

1. Are you currently using, or have you used in the past, any prescription medical treatments to treat your OUD? Such treatments may include buprenorphine, methadone and naltrexone, and others that your healthcare provider has prescribed. If so, please describe your experiences with these treatments.
• How well have these treatments worked for you? How well have they helped address the effects of OUD that are most bothersome to you?
• What are the biggest problems you have faced in using these treatments?
 

Examples may include bothersome side effects, challenges getting the medicines, concern about stigma, and other possible problems.  

 

1. Besides prescription medical treatments, are there other treatments or therapies that you currently use to address your OUD? If so, please describe. How well do these treatments or therapies help address the effects of OUD that are most bothersome to you?
2. Of all treatments, therapies, or other steps that you have taken to address your OUD, what have you found to be most effective in helping you manage your OUD?
3. What are the biggest factors that you take into account when making decisions about seeking out or using treatments for OUD?
4. What specific things would you look for in an ideal treatment for OUD?

If you had the opportunity to consider participating in a clinical trial studying experimental treatments for OUD, what factors would you consider when deciding whether or not to participate?

 

Public Meeting on Patient-Focused Drug Development for Opioid Use Disorder

When: April 17, 2018, 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. (registration begins at 9:00am)  
Where: FDA White Oak Campus 10903 New Hampshire Ave. Building 31, Room 1503A (Great Room) Silver Spring, MD 20993

For more information, registration, and webcast information, please click here.

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If you or a loved one is struggling with opioid use disorder, please contact Whiteside Manor. Our experienced staff can help you adopt a new way of living and give you tools for working a program of long-term recovery.