The Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, through its Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, introduced statewide guidance for treating opioid use disorder in emergency departments across the state.
Here are three things to know:
- Developed through Delaware’s Overdose System of Care, the recommendations establish a consistent framework for how emergency departments identify, treat and connect patients experiencing opioid withdrawal or overdose to ongoing care. The guidance reflects nearly a year of collaboration between emergency physicians, addiction specialists, hospitals, behavioral health professionals and state partners.
- The recommendations also cover the emergency department encounter from patient engagement and withdrawal management to medication initiation for opioid use disorder, discharge planning, warm handoffs to treatment providers and connections to recovery support services. They also emphasize reducing stigma, using person-centered language and treating opioid use disorder as a chronic medical condition.
- In 2017, Delaware launched its Overdose System of Care to improve coordination among emergency medical services, hospitals, treatment providers and community organizations responding to the opioid epidemic.
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