New research to focus on burpenorphine prescribing

The Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies has been awarded a five-year grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to increase the number of physicians certified to prescribe buprenorphine.

Overdose due to non-medical use of prescription opioids has become the leading cause of accidental death in the United States. Medication-assisted treatment with buprenorphine is a key evidence-based intervention for treating opioid use disorders and preventing overdose deaths. Yet efforts to expand use of buprenorphine have been hampered by the limited number of physicians licensed to prescribe the medication. The project will test a bundle of practices that addiction treatment organizations can use to recruit physicians.

The five-year study will involve 70 addiction treatment organizations in three states: Florida, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Half of the organizations in the study will use the NIATx model to implement the bundle of practices.

Todd Molfenter, PhD, NIATx Deputy Director and Senior Scientist at the Center, is the principle investigator for the study.

Hannah Knudsen, PhD, University of Kentucky, is the co-investigator for the project.

For more information, contact Todd Molfenter: todd.molfenter@wisc.edu