Doctors nudged by overdose letter prescribe fewer opioids
August 10, 2018
In a novel experiment, doctors got a letter from the medical examiner's office telling them of their patient's fatal overdose. The response: They started prescribing fewer opioids.
Other doctors, whose patients also overdosed, didn't get letters. Their opioid prescribing didn't change.
More than 400 "Dear Doctor" letters, sent last year in San Diego County, were part of a study that, researchers say, put a human face on the U.S. opioid crisis for many doctors.
"It's a powerful thing to learn," said University of Southern California public policy researcher Jason Doctor, lead author of the p...
For access to this article please
sign in or
subscribe.
Reader Comments(0)