Penn State Health is establishing a medication-assisted opioid treatment program at the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute in Harrisburg, aimed at revolutionizing how opioid use disorder is managed. The new system uses a “hub-and-spoke” model, with the hub providing a wide range of services to address physical and mental health along with case management and legal services. The “spokes” are primary care practices that may not be able to treat those with severe opioid use disorder.
The initiative is funded by one of four $1 million grants that the Wolf Administration awarded statewide to combat the opioid epidemic. The four projects together establish the Pennsylvania Coordinated Medication-Assisted Treatment program, funded through the 21st Century Cures grant, a $26.5 million federal grant received by the Wolf Administration. According to Dr. Sarah Kawasaki, an internist and addiction medicine specialist at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and the PPI, “This new system will provide a continuum of care, connecting primary care clinics throughout south central Pennsylvania with more intensive opioid treatment programs to ensure their patients receive the care they need and don’t fall through the cracks.”
The step-wise approach to treatment is similar to how physicians treat other illnesses such as diabetes and cancer. Dr. A. Craig Hillemeier, CEO of Penn State Health, emphasized that “when treatment includes both medication and therapy, patients do better. And when patients do better, families and communities do better.” The program aims to create a framework allowing people from any healthcare setting or socioeconomic background to quickly access treatment in a way that “restores their dignity, helping them to become productive members of society.”
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://pennstatehealthnews.org/2017/10/penn-state-health-to-establish-medication-assisted-opioid-treatment-program-at-pennsylvania-psychiatric-institute/