“It was a wakeup call that we had an enormous problem and I was sticking my head in the sand.” - Craig smith, M.D.
Frum says, “It has been a joy as a CEO to see our medical staff identify a major problem – and here in western Maine it is a significant problem – and figure out a creative way to address it.” The practitioners who are implementing MAT view it as the standard of care for treating OUD. They say it saves lives while increasing the chances patients remain in treatment and learn the skills necessary for long-term recovery. Smith, three other physicians – including his wife, Jennifer Smith, M.D., also a member of the hospital’s medical staff – and two nurse practitioners, prescribe the medication. Crooked River Counseling provides intensive outpatient counseling and group therapy for the patients. About 200 patients are enrolled in the program. Appointments at Smith’s North Bridgton Family Practice are coordinated with patients’ counseling sessions at Crooked River Counseling, just five miles down the road. Crooked River Counseling is located on the hospital’s campus, which the partners say leads to better coordination of the treatment and services.>>>
Death a Day Tackling the opioid crisis in a rural community
With the support of Bridgton Hospital CEO David Frum, Smith partnered with Bell, director of Crooked River Counseling, to set up medication-assisted treatment – or MAT – to treat OUD in his primary care practice. MAT pairs nondrug therapies, such as counseling or cognitive behavioral therapy, with a Food and Drug Administration-approved medication, like Suboxone, to treat patients suffering from OUD. Before the program began in 2009, the only other OUD treatment option was a methadone clinic, which was an hour and 45 minute drive away in Portland. “We got overwhelming support from the hospital,” says Smith. “I was amazed when David and our leadership said, ‘if you are telling us this is a significant problem in our community, we will standby you and do whatever we need to do to care for these patients.’” As part of the program, the 25-bed critical access hospital provides comprehensive maternity care to women with OUD during their pregnancy.
AHA News, Sep 27, 2017 One death a day in Maine is caused by an opioid overdose. Bridgton family practice physician Craig Smith, M.D., a member of the Bridgton Hospital medical staff, is on the front line in the battle against the crisis that is harming people of all ages and all walks of life – not just in Maine but in communities large and small across the country. A Bridgton substance abuse counselor, Catherine Bell, nearly a decade ago approached Smith about prescribing Suboxone, an opiate withdrawal medication, to treat patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). If he did, she would provide counseling to those patients. Smith was reluctant to do so until he realized the OUD crisis had reached his tiny community of 5,000 residents and could not be ignored. Four of his patients died of overdoses in one month, including a 34-year-old mom of two small children. “I was totally unaware they were using it,” he says. “It was a wakeup call that we had an enormous problem and I was sticking my head in the sand.”
6
7
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker