Clinic Ban on Roxicodone, Opana IR, and Oxycontin OC (discontinued form)

Care Practice operates under a strict policy that prohibits all of our physicians from prescribing Roxicodone, Opana IR, and Oxycontin OC (discontinued). Other medications will be added to the ban as needed. We recognize that many patients take these medications as prescribed for chronic pain and use them as prescribed with excellent results. Unfortunately the excuse of doing some good can no longer be an excuse for doing so much harm. We have two decades of writing Oxycontin prescriptions behind us, and we have an epidemic of drug overdoses and addiction in our nation as a result with the vast majority of heroin addicts beginning their addicts with prescribed medications. It is time that we face this problem directly and no longer assume it is a problem that originates in another clinic or from the hands of another doctor. This drug epidemic has its origins in each of our exam rooms with our hands writing the prescriptions. Current estimates are that over 80% of these medications are diverted from the purpose written originally by the prescribing doctor. These staggering numbers should make it impossible to hide from this ugly truth. This policy is our way of accepting this realizations as the people now entrusted to help fix the problem.

We have a heavy emphasis on using alternative long acting opiates to treat chronic pain rather than opiates with abuse potential. This will be unpopular with some who insist on these medications unique usefulness in treating pain. This policy is how came together and decided to do our part in cutting off the supply of these medications to the street.

Sincerely,
Medical Staff
Care Practice

The Impact

Our simple Oxycontin policy ban implemented a few years ago had a remarkable and lasting impact on the health and efficiency of the clinic. It empowered the staff by giving them something they could forward to anyone seeking more information about new appointments, particularly pain patients. We put it on our website and on office clipboards where patients signed in. The doctor shopping and drug seekers virtually disappeared overnight. Early on we learned that an Oxy addict never calls up to make and appointment mentioning the word Oxycontin. That word doesn’t get dropped until halfway through the visit when you are pressed for time. And with Care Practice averaging over 7 new patients a day, 7 days a week for years it was clear we had to implement some controls. This was especially important since all five doctors at the time we implemented it were heavily working in treating addiction making us one of the top clinics in the city for dealing with the opiate epidemic. This policy virtually eliminated these frustrating and difficult interactions with new patients. It dramatically reduced inefficiencies and made the doctors and the staff much happier.

Addiction can penetrate any barrier.

The power of addiction is so strong it can breach any wall no matter how thick or how high. In the end we learned that the best defense was letting everyone know there was nothing they were going to get at Care Practice.

Join the growing list of clinics who have decided to no longer prescribe Oxycontin, Roxicodone, Opana IR