Physician anesthesiologists play a major role in managing pain. They can ensure patients undergoing surgery have a pain management plan tailored to their needs, including patients with prior opioid exposure who are opioid tolerant and pose unique challenges for surgery. Physicians must also manage patients after surgery and provide care to those suffering from chronic pain. Over decades, physician anesthesiologists have acquired specialized knowledge in minimizing opioid use for surgical patients to speed recovery. These approaches reduce or eliminate opioid exposure and the attendant risks, and are generally transferable to many settings in which acute pain management is required.

UPON COMPLETION OF THIS COURSE, PARTICIPANTS WILL BE ABLE TO:
- Explain the role of physician anesthesiologists and how they can have an impact on the opioid epidemic.
- Describe techniques physician anesthesiologists are using to reduce opioid use during and after surgery, including multimodal, opioid-sparing analgesic regimens and regional anesthesia and analgesia for the benefit of both opioid-naïve and -tolerant patients.
- List interventional therapies physician anesthesiologists can recommend for chronic pain patients.