April 2006 E-Newsletter

ASPI Annual Meeting Features Expert on EOL Care

ASPI National Office Welcomes Outreach Coordinator

PCPI Conference Focused on End of Life Care

New Prescribing Law In New York Raises Questions

Florida Pain Initiative Comments on Rx Monitoring Bill

ASPI ANNUAL MEETING FEATURES EXPERT ON EOL CARE

The ASPI is honored to welcome Dr. Joanne Lynn as the keynote speaker at the ASPI’s national meeting June 15-17 in Phoenix, AZ. As a hospice and long-term care physician, ethicist, health policy expert, and author, Dr. Lynn is an internationally known leader in helping terminally ill persons improve their quality of life. You will not want to miss an opportunity to discuss important pain management issues with Dr. Lynn and prominent leaders in the State Pain Initiative movement. Register by April 21 and save $50. Information about the meeting and registration form are available on the ASPI’s website at www.ASPI.wisc.edu

ASPI NATIONAL OFFICE WELCOMES OUTREACH COORDINATOR

Ronna Popkin recently joined the national office of the ASPI as an outreach coordinator. Ronna earned her Bachelor of Science in Women's Studies and her Master of Science in Health Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She most recently worked as a community outreach educator for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, where she coordinated and implemented health outreach programs for both youth and adults, trained and managed the agency's network of volunteer educators, and served as the organization's adult and professional education specialist. Ronna will be organizing the ASPI’s annual national meeting and coordinating outreach efforts to the State Pain Initiatives. The national office of the ASPI is housed at the University of Wisconsin’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.

PCPI CONFERENCE FOCUSED ON END OF LIFE CARE

Nearly 200 health care professionals attended the 15th annual conference of the Pennsylvania Cancer Pain Initiative on April 7. The conference featured presentations by national experts on the policy, clinical and ethical issues involved in improving the management of pain and quality of life for persons dying in acute and long-term care settings. This year’s conference followed the PCPI’s long-standing tradition of providing exceptional educational programs for health care professionals and pain management advocates throughout the state of Pennsylvania. For more information about the PCPI, visit www.papainrelief.org

NEW PRESCRIBING LAW IN NEW YORK RAISES QUESTIONS

New requirements for clinicians who prescribe and dispense drugs in the State of New York went into effect this month and the NY State Pain Initiative (NYSPI) wants to know the impact on pain management. The new state law requires all prescriptions be written on official state-issued prescription forms and requires information on prescriptions for controlled substances to be sent to the state Department of Health. The NYSPI and the American Cancer Society, Eastern Division are seeking input from other state professional health and medical organizations to determine how the law may impact medical practice.

FLORIDA PAIN INITIATIVE COMMENTS ON RX MONITORING BILL

Legislation to establish a statewide program to track the prescribing of controlled substances is once again before the Florida State Legislature. In a letter to the bill’s author, the Florida Pain Initiative (FPI) suggested amending the bill to minimize the potential adverse affect a monitoring program could have on pain care. The FPI expressed concern that a monitoring program may heighten practitioners’ fears of regulatory scrutiny and deter the use of opioid analgesics even when clinically appropriate. The FPI’s comments incorporated many of the recommendations offered by the ASPI’s position statement on prescription monitoring programs. You can read both the FPI letter and the ASPI position statement online at http://ASPI.wisc.edu/policy.htm

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