NPS MedicineWise is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health through the Quality Use of Diagnostics, Therapeutics and Pathology Program to improve the way medicines and medical tests are prescribed and used (QUM grant).
Opioids, chronic pain and the bigger picture aims to improve the quality use of opioids and reduce harms for Australians with chronic non-cancer pain who are managed in primary care. Furthermore, it aims to improve health literacy related to opioids and deliver PBS savings relating to relevant opioid medicines. NPS MedicineWise has worked with Pain Australia, the Faculty of Pain Medicine ANZCA and the NSW Agency of Clinical Innovation to develop this program.
Program facts and figures
- Program delivery: October 2019 – September 2020
- Program reach: National delivery of educational visits to 9040 GPs
- Pre-program estimated PBS savings: $7.9 million per annum
- Program costs Financial Year 2020-21: $1,061,535
Health professional resources
- Program landing page: Opioids, chronic pain and the bigger picture
- Educational visits for GPs (CPD accredited) (closed)
- Pharmacy visits
- Audit and feedback
- PBS Practice Review – Opioids: Prescribing in chronic non-cancer pain
- Clinical e-audit - Opioids: redefining ‘doing well’ on opioids (CPD option for GPs)
- Pharmacy Practice Review - Opioids: reducing harms from long-term use (CPD option for pharmacists)
- National Prescribing Curriculum
- Publications
- Clinical tools and resources
- Related publications and podcasts
- RADAR article: Naloxone nasal spray (Nyxoid) for opioid overdose
- RADAR (in brief) article: Additional changes for PBS-listed opioids
- Australian Prescriber: Real‑time prescription monitoring: helping people at risk of harm
- Australian Prescriber: Real-time prescription monitoring: lessons from Tasmania
- Australian Prescriber: Management of postsurgical pain in the community
- Australian Prescriber: Management of dental pain in primary care
- Australian Prescriber: Managing acute dental pain without codeine
- Australian Prescriber podcast: Real‑time prescription monitoring: helping people at risk of harm
- Australian Prescriber podcast: opioid prescribing in dentistry-is there a problem?
* Note: CPD accreditation is only available for webinars attended live. Viewing of the webinar recording can be self-recorded as CPD.
Consumer resources
- Choosing Wisely 5 questions to ask your healthcare provider: