Nurse Practitioners are faced with a duty to reduce suffering and improve quality of life for patients who live with chronic pain. Historically in the U.S., pharmacological treatment with opioids has been a mainstay of chronic pain management. Access to non-pharmacological therapies has been limited due to lack of health care resources and insurance coverage (Dasgupta, Beletsky, & Ciccarone, 2018). Despite the decrease in opioid prescribing, the rate of opioid overdose in the U.S. continues to climb and increased by 38% from 2012 to 2015 (CDC, 2017). The President has declared the opioid crisis a national Public Health Emergency under federal law.
1. As an FNP, Discuss your position on managing chronic pain in light of the opioid crisis and federal and state regulations to reduce opioid overuse.
2. Identify the prescriptive authority granted by the state of Northern Virginia where intend to seek licensure, in regard to controlled substances.
Document this assignment in 2 pages word document, include 3 references published in las 5 years.
