Opioid Basics

Opioid are a class of drugs used to reduce pain.

Overdose Prevention

The best ways to prevent opioid deaths are to improve opioid prescribing, reduce exposure to opioids, prevent misuse and treat opioid use disorder.

Information for Patients

Living with chronic pain can be devastating, and effective pain management is important to getting your life back. It is essential that you and your doctor discuss treatment options, carefully considering all of the risks and benefits. Some medications, such as prescription opioids, can help relieve pain in the short term but also come with serious risks and potential complications—and should be prescribed and used carefully.

Montage Health's Prescribe Safe program is a collaborative effort between doctors, hospitals, and law enforcement to address the problem of misuse of prescription medications. The project’s goals are to educate physicians and patients about the high risks of dependency and overdose that come with the use of prescription pain medications, as well as promote best practices that minimize these risks. Additionally, seeking to reduce the overall use of potentially addictive opioid pain medications, Prescribe Safe promotes alternative pain management strategies that can have greater lasting benefit for patients, without bringing the high risks associated with opioid medications.

Prescribe Safe's website has numerous resources for physicians, patients, and family members who want to learn more.

montagehealth.org/prescribesafe

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