The following is a summary of “Changes in opioid prescribing and prescription drug monitoring program utilization following electronic health record integration—Massachusetts, 2018,” published in the February 2024 issue of Pain by Corry, et al.
Researchers started a retrospective study investigating the impact of integrating prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP) with electronic health records (EHR) on clinician prescribing behavior in Massachusetts healthcare facilities.
They examined the impact of EHR integration on opioid prescribing, including 7-day rolling averages of opioids prescribed, morphine milligram equivalents (MMEs) prescribed, and PDMP queries, in a longitudinal study over 15 months. This encompassed six and a half months before and after integration, with a two-month integration period. Longitudinal mixed-effects models were utilized to analyze the effect of EHR integration on each outcome.
The results showed a rise in PDMP queries, both via the web-based portal and in total (0.037, [95% CI = 0.017, 0.057] and 0.056, [95% CI = 0.035, 0.077]) post-EHR integration. Clinician opioid prescribing declined during the study, with no significant impact observed post-integration. Results were consistent in an analysis of continuous PDMP users.
Investigators concluded that integrating PDMP data into EHRs increased clinician use of the PDMP system, but did not show a direct link to changes in opioid prescribing practices.
Source: academic.oup.com/painmedicine/advance-article/doi/10.1093/pm/pnae012/7614098
