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PCSS

PCSS and The Office-Based Treatment of Opioid Dependence (Waiver Eligibility Training)


View PCSS and Waiver Eligibility Trainings

Sponsorship
PCSS is a program funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) created in response to the opioid overdose epidemic to train primary care providers in the evidence-based prevention and treatment of opioid use disorders (OUD) and treatment of chronic pain. The project is geared toward primary care providers who wish to treat OUD. PCSS is made up of a coalition, led by American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP), of major health organizations, all dedicated to addressing this healthcare crisis. Through a variety of trainings and a clinical mentoring program, PCSS’s mission is to increase healthcare providers’ knowledge and skills in the prevention, identification, and treatment of substance use disorders with a focus on opioid use disorders.

PCSS is made up of a coalition of 23 leading national organizations representing healthcare providers and other key stakeholders who are working on the front lines of the opioid crisis.
PCSS Partner Organizations

Program Overview

Training is available for those interested in seeking their waiver to prescribe buprenorphine in the treatment of opioid addiction. Physicians are required to apply to the Drug Enforcement Agency for a waiver to prescribe buprenorphine, one of three medications approved by the FDA for the treatment of opioid use disorder. Those physicians who want to treat more than 30 patients at any one time, must take the 8-hour waiver course.

To treat more than 30 patients, Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) (NP/CNM/CNS/CRNA) and Physician Assistants (PAs) must complete 24 hours of specialized training to prescribe buprenorphine. The training includes 8 hours of waiver training and an additional 16 hours of training.

The AOAAM uses the Half-and-Half format where 4.25-hours of either a face-to-face training with an instructor or 4.25-hours of a live webcast training with an instructor make up the first half of the training and a 3.75-hour computer-based self-study make up the second half for a combined total of 8-hours of training.


1st Half of the Course
A face-to-face or live webcast, classroom-style training for a 4.25-hour session. The training focuses on specifics of treating patients with opioid use disorders in office-based settings and clinical vignettes to help trainees think through “real life” experiences in opioid use disorders treatment.

2nd Half of the Course
3.75 hours of on-your-own computer-based training on substance abuse treatment, opioids, and the use of buprenorphine in the treatment of opioid use disorders from office-based practices. An examination must be successfully completed to obtain a waiver for prescribing buprenorphine.

The combined online computer-study and face-to-face/or live webcast training provides physicians the required 8 hours needed to obtain the waiver to prescribe buprenorphine in office-based treatment of opioid use disorder. It also provides NPs and PAs the 8-hours of training to be applied toward their 24-hours of required training time. NPs and PAs will be required to train for an additional 16 hours before they are eligible to apply for the waiver. SAMHSA offers this training for free. Click here for info: NPs and PAs - Additional 16-hour Component
Participants will have 30 days after the 4.25-hour session to complete the modules and examination in Part 2. The AOAAM cannot verify completion of the webinar session or live session if less than 4.25 hours are attended. Should you not attend for the entire session, you will have to retake the 4.25-hour session again on a different date in order to receive credit. Please be aware that it is MANDATORY that you are able to view the presentation slides and participate in the interactive polling questions in order to verify webinar attendance. Audio attendance only does not qualify for webinar participation. Instructions on how to log on to the second half of the course will be provided via email to participants who complete the 4.25-hour session in its entirety.

Continuing Medical Education
Half and Half Training - Live Webcasts and Face-to-Face Formats
This program has been approved for 4.25 AOA Category 1-A CME credits providing all requirements have been met. This program has also been approved for 4.25 AAFP Prescribed Credit hours, by the American Academy of Family Physicians. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted by the American Medical Association as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. When applying for the AMA PRA, Prescribed credit earned must be reported as Prescribed credit, not as Category 1. Participants are required to attend the entire 4.25-hour session and participate in the polling questions and post-test (with a passing grade of 70%) in order to be eligible for CME credit. Please verify with the AOAAM for all CME details on the face-to-face trainings as the CME component may differ for each individual training date and location depending on the sponsoring organizations.

8-Hour Training - Face-to-Face Format
This training has been reviewed and is acceptable for up to 8.00 Prescribed credit(s) by the American Academy of Family Physicians. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted by the American Medical Association as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. When applying for the AMA PRA, Prescribed credit earned must be reported as Prescribed credit, not as Category 1. The American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine (AOAAM) is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association to provide osteopathic continuing medical education for physicians. The AOAAM anticipates this program being approved for a maximum of 8.0 AOA Category 1-A credits and will report CME credits commensurate with the extent of the physician’s participation in this activity. Please check with the AOAAM for all CME details on each 8-Hour Face-to-Face training as this component may differ for each individual training date and location depending on the sponsoring organization and faculty.

Program Goals and Objectives
PCSS’ Mission is to promote evidence-based resources and clinical practices.

1.)    Maintain and expand a comprehensive electronic repository of training materials and educational resources to support evidence-based treatment of opioid use disorder.

Training is designed to increase the knowledge base and clinical proficiency of prescribers and providers from diverse multi-disciplinary healthcare backgrounds. An on-line curriculum includes:

  • Patient selection and matching with treatment setting (residential, outpatient program, office-based) and specific medications (methadone, buprenorphine, or naltrexone)
  • Practical guidelines for detoxification (both outpatient and inpatient)
  • Implementing antagonist-based treatment, managing long-term maintenance on medications
  • Transitioning from agonist- to antagonist-based treatment
  • Managing substance use and co-occurring psychiatric disorders
  • Treatment of individuals with co-occurring medical problems and chronic pain
  • Treatment in specialized populations such as adolescents, elderly, pregnant women, and those involved in veterans and criminal justice healthcare systems (for detailed description of the training curriculum, see below).

The content of educational resources is overseen by a panel of experienced clinicians, researchers, and educators forming a Clinical Expert Panel.

2.)    Expand existing clinical mentoring program to provide guidance to prescribers and key health professionals on prevention, identification, and treatment of opioid use disorder.

  • The program provides clinical mentors and matches them with clinicians. Communications between mentors and clinicians is primarily via phone and Internet (email, video). A discussion forum, moderated by an addiction expert, allows healthcare professionals to post questions and to encourage communication among a wide range of providers.
3.)    Expand MAT training for physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants.
  • All PCSS MAT trainings are FREE and available to physicians, physicians’ assistants, nurse practitioners and others.·         

For More Information and FREE training and educational resources on Medication Assisted Treatment –Providers' Clinical Support System (PCSS) visit pcssNOW.org.

Funding for this initiative was made possible (in part) by grant no. 1H79TI081968 from SAMHSA. The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Mission Statement

The mission of the American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine is to improve the health of individuals and families burdened with the disease of addiction.

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