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. 2020 Oct;220(4):823-827.
doi: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2020.06.013. Epub 2020 Jun 19.

Surgeon experience and opioid prescribing

Katherine B Santosa  1 , Christine S Wang  2 , Hsou-Mei Hu  3 , Chad M Brummett  4 , Michael J Englesbe  5 , Jennifer F Waljee  6
Affiliations

Surgeon experience and opioid prescribing

Katherine B Santosa et al. Am J Surg. 2020 Oct.

Abstract

Background: We evaluated the effects of surgeon characteristics such as surgeon experience on differences in opioid prescribing after surgery.

Methods: We evaluated a 20% national sample of Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years old who underwent 15 different types of surgery to identify surgeon characteristics associated with opioid prescription size filled within seven days of discharge using a multi-level linear model.

Results: 174,141 patients and 13,828 surgeons met inclusion criteria. 53.8% of patients filled an opioid prescription within seven days postoperatively. The amount of opioids prescribed after surgery was highest for patients whose surgeons were early in practice (i.e. 0-7 years in practice). Surgeon credentials, type of surgery, and geographic region were associated with differing sizes of opioid fills postoperatively.

Conclusions: Surgeon characteristics such as cumulative years of practice contribute to differences in prescribing behavior after surgery. These findings can help develop strategic interventions to enhance opioid stewardship.

Keywords: Opioid analgesics; Opioids; Over; Prescribing; Prescription; Surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest Dr. Santosa reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Dr. Wang reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Dr. Hu reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Dr. Brummett reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Dr. Englesbe reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Dr. Waljee reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Adjusted amount of opioids in total OME in the initial post-discharge prescription by surgeon experience. OME, oral morphine equivalent
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

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