Jacksonville, Fla.-based St. Vincent's Medical Center Southside conducted a pilot to reduce the use of opioids for joint replacement patients, according to The Florida Times-Union.
Here are five takeaways.
1. The pilot involved 275 joint replacement patients and resulted in a 76 percent drop in opioid usage. Patients' pain scores also decreased.
2. Hospital officials asked Gavan Duffy, MD, to reduce the amount of opioids he prescribed. The medical director for the St. Vincent's Orthopedic Center of Excellence in Jacksonville, Dr. Duffy performed about 900 joint replacements annually and prescribed more opioids than any other St. Vincent's physician.
3. Dr. Duffy began using local anesthetics instead of general anesthetics. He used a spinal anesthetic for hip replacement surgeries and Marcaine for knee surgeries. For postoperative pain, he prescribed Tylenol and Celebrex and used muscle relaxers as needed.
4. Opioids were prescribed to patients who reported extreme pain that wasn't relieved by non-narcotic medications.
5. Jacksonville-based St. Vincent's HealthCare plans to make Dr. Duffy's new approach the system-wide standard of care for orthopedic care.
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