Prescription Opioid Abuse Case Study

Currently in the United States, prescription opioid abuse is at an extremely high epidemic level. Prescription opioid abuse is at a peak due to the fact they are easily obtainable. The abusers themselves can either be prescribed the painkiller, their friends or family members may be prescribed, or they can purchase these medications on the street from dealers who are trying to make a quick buck. A major role of community health nurses today is to prevent the spread of illness and disease. According to the American Nurses Association Scope and Standards of Practice, every nurse has a role in providing healthcare to each individual and community based on their needs. It is a nurses’ priority to aid in the decline of serious health conditions …show more content…
Nurses are well-educated and positioned to help decrease the number of occurrences and potentially fatal outcomes of prescription opioid diversion (Manworren & Gilson, 2015). Nurses can educate patients who are prescribed painkillers the risks of opioid overdose and provide them with the proper information on how to dispose opioids that are no longer of use to them. Nurses should allow opportunities for feedback and evaluation of the effectiveness of the strategies used. They should also use information technologies to communicate health promotion and disease prevention information to the healthcare consumer in a variety of settings (ANA, 2010). The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) (2008) states, in The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice, under Essential VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health that it is essential for each and every nurse to promote health, and prevent injuries and diseases in order to improve public population health. “Clinical prevention refers to individually focused interventions such as immunizations, screenings, and counseling aimed at preventing escalation of diseases and conditions” (AACN,