Community of Practice

The DC Community of Practice is a CME/CE program designed for both clinical and non-clinical providers to share best practices and collaboratively address the holistic health needs of individuals with opioid use disorders. Each session consists of a knowledge and skills building component led by expert faculty, followed by a group discussion and resource exchange.

DC Community of Practice:Medications for Opioid Use Disorder

The DC Community of Practice is a program designed for both clinical and non-clinical providers to share best practices and collaboratively address the holistic health needs of individuals with opioid use disorders. Each session consists of a knowledge and skills building component led by expert faculty, followed by a group discussion and resource exchange.

Join us on Friday, September 23, 2022 at 12:00pm EDT for the next DC Community of Practice session. The training will discuss several different aspects of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for treating opioid use disorder (OUD) and will equip providers with strategies for explaining different treatment options to patients.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, you will be able to…

  • Describe disparities in utilization of medications for OUD.
  • Provide effective strategies for counseling patients on the pharmacologic differences between methadone (MET) and buprenorphine (BUP).
  • Provide effective strategies for counseling patients on the practicalities of participating in office-based opioid treatment (OBOT) vs. an opioid treatment program (OTP).
  • Discuss methods for facilitating transitions of care between OBOT offices and OTPs.

Register for this session: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcrdeGgrD0iE9UHslStyB6U1w5xO_9d-5R2

DC Community of Practice, Session 1:
Key Components of Treatment Planning and Appropriately Identifying Medication

This session explores how multidisciplinary team members (clinical providers, other practitioners, social workers, and administrators) can connect with each other in order to expand access to substance use disorder treatment services in DC by:

  • Enhancing patient, provider, and practice outcomes related to the identification and treatment of persons with opioid use disorder;
  • Developing a interdisciplinary knowledge exchange via peer-to-peer learning and capacity enhancement to identify, engage, treat, and coordinate services for people with opioid use disorder; and
  • Supporting prevention, education, stigma reduction, treatment and recovery services for people with opioid use disorders and other substance use disorders by increasing access to medication assisted treatment (MAT).

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, you will be able to…

  • Describe best practices for connecting with other DC providers who serve people with opioid use disorder.
  • Enhance collegiality and professional mentoring skills.
  • Improve communication between and within systems of care addressing substance use disorders.
  • Promote recovery and resiliency oriented principles and practices.

View this session: [Coming Soon]

DC Community of Practice, Session 2:
Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) Case Study

This session explores how multidisciplinary team members (clinical providers, other practitioners, social workers, and administrators) can connect with each other in order to expand access to substance use disorder treatment services in DC by:

  • Enhancing patient, provider, and practice outcomes related to the identification and treatment of persons with opioid use disorder;
  • Developing an interdisciplinary knowledge exchange via peer-to-peer learning and capacity enhancement to identify, engage, treat, and coordinate services for people with opioid use disorder; and
  • Supporting prevention, education, stigma reduction, treatment, and recovery services for people with opioid use disorders and other substance use disorders by increasing access to medication assisted treatment (MAT).

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, you will be able to:

  • Identify the steps for enrolling a patient in MAT.
  • Describe the information included in a MAT agreement.
  • Define the risk of HCV transmission and the steps to take if a patient tests positive for HCV.
  • Identify the tests for MAT patients.

View this session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d38KZ209uSs 

DC Community of Practice, Session 3:
Opioid Receptors – A Review

This session explores the relationship between opioid receptors, opioid use disorder, and medication-assisted treatment (MAT).

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, you will be able to:

  • Describe the opioid receptor system’s importance in general and as it relates to opioid use disorder.
  • Explain how genetic mutation may make someone more susceptible to developing opioid use disorder.
  • Describe the process of opioid receptor-binding for buprenorphine, methadone, and naloxone.
  • Explain how cocaine’s receptor binding can lead to its misuse.
  • Discuss the state of ongoing receptor research into finding effective analgesics without the serious potential side effects of current opioids, especially respiratory depression and misuse potential.

View this session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exiphSOFw-s