Burling, Stacey. “How Doctors Are Reducing Opioid Use after Surgery.” Https://Www.inquirer.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer, 31 Mar. 2017, www.inquirer.com/philly/health/addiction/How-doctors-are-reducing-opioid-use-after-surgery.html.

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This source discusses multimodal methods being used nationwide now, and what the patients and surgeons can do pre-op to prevent the prescription and mis-use of opioids. For example, a prevalent method that has been more commonly used are regional blocks for most orthopedic surgeries. Regional blocks are an injection of local anesthetic into a specific part of the body at the root of the nerve, for optimal pain control. These regional blocks help patients have up to five days of pain control with one shot of a numbing medication. One of the many anesthesiologists mentioned in the passage, Ed Mariano, says that, “he thinks the blocks, which reduce opioid use, and allow patients to sleep better and start physical therapy faster, have proven their value and should be used more often” (Burling 1). This source acknowledges different experts on the topic, which brings a sense of credibility to this article. This article also describes physicians' negative and positive encounters with their patients regarding pain control methods. In the hospital I observe in, we utilize most of the methods described in the document. For example, the author explains methods like: giving patients pills like Lyrica or intravenous tylenol in pre-op, doctors prescribing fewer pills at a time, regional blocks, and having patients understand the risk of opioid abuse. By including these methods, the hope is that it will help reduce opioid addiction.

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