Controlled Substances and Substance Abuse: Best Practices for the Healthcare Professional

What you'll learn

Course overview

This activity is organized around the decisions prescribers actually make when using controlled substances such as opioids, stimulants, sedatives, and tranquilizers, balancing meaningful symptom relief against the risks of misuse, diversion, overdose, and substance use disorder. It addresses whether to initiate a controlled substance, how to monitor and reassess therapy, when to mitigate risk and offer naloxone, how to manage pain in special populations such as patients with sickle cell disease, and when to taper, refer, or evaluate for a substance use disorder. The content reflects current, guideline-based practice consistent with the CDC Clinical Practice Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Pain (2022) and other contemporary standards and applies to both physicians and physician assistants who prescribe controlled substances.