ADA Practical Guide to Substance Use Disorders and Safe Prescribing

Dentists have been inundated by patients with an array of complicated medical conditions and pain/sedation management issues. This is in addition to a variety of legal regulations dentists must follow regarding the storage and recordkeeping of controlled substances. Avoid unknowingly putting your practice at risk by becoming victim to a scam or violating a recordkeeping requirement with The ADA Practical Guide to Substance Use Disorders and Safe Prescribing.

This Practical Guide is ideal for dentists and staff as they navigate:

• Detecting and deterring substance use disorders (SUD) and drug diversion in the dental office (drug-seeking patients)
• Prescribing complexities
• Treating patients with SUD and complex analgesic and sedation (pain/sedation management) needs and the best use of sedation anxiety medication
• Interviewing and counselling options for SUD
• Federal drug regulations
Commonly used illicit, prescription, and over-the-counter drugs, as well as alcohol and tobacco, are also covered.

Special features include:

• Clinical tools proven to aid in the identification, interviewing, intervention, referral and treatment of SUD
• Basic elements of SUD, acute pain/sedation management, and drug diversion
• Summary of evidence-based literature that supports what, when and how to prescribe controlled substances to patients with SUD
• Discussion of key federal controlled substance regulations that frequently impact dental practitioners
• Checklists to help prevent drug diversion in dental practices
• Chapter on impaired dental professionals
• Case studies that examine safe prescribing and due diligence

Michael O’Neil, Pharm.D., is Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice at South College School of Pharmacy in Knoxville, Tennessee. Dr. O’Neil has more than 25 years’ experience as a critical care and pain specialist and has taught pharmacy students, pharmacy residents, nursing students, surgery/medical students, and medical residents in the classroom and at the bedside. He has completed research and published in several leading health professional journals including pharmacy, dentistry, and nursing. Dr. O’Neil has also served as a consultant and expert on prescription drug abuse, substance abuse, and drug diversion for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the West Virginia Board of Dental Examiners, the American Association of Dental Boards, and several law enforcement agencies. Dr. O’Neil developed the West Virginia Pharmacists Recovery Network where he served as Executive Director and head investigator. Dr. O’Neil helped initiate other professional recovery networks in medicine, dentistry and nursing.