Educational Webinar
The Role of Surgeons in Addressing the Opioid Crisis
Friday, April 6, 2018
1:30 – 3:30 PM
As health care providers, we are all aware of the severity of the opioid crisis. Surgeons and their practice teams can play a key role in addressing this problem. Surgeons have the second-highest opioid prescribing rate in the country; in addition, one out of every three prescriptions written by a surgeon is for an opioid. The first SCW educational webinar will offer insight into opportunities for surgeons to change opioid prescribing patterns, as well as new information on potential alternatives for pain management. Join your colleagues from across the state to learn and network.
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Panelists
Jonathan Kohler, MD, MA (Director, UW Project ECHO)
Moderator
Tom Engels (Deputy Secretary, Department of Health Services)
Update from the Governor’s Task Force on Opioid Abuse
David Melnick, MD, MPH (UW Health)
Joseph Imbus, MD (UW-Madison)
“Characterizing Surgeon Prescribing Practices and Opioid Use after Outpatient General Surgery”
Nathan J. Rudin, MD (UW Health Pain Management Clinic)
“Managing Pain Post-Operatively and Beyond: What are the Options?”
About the Panelists
Jonathan Kohler, MD, MA
Dr. Jonathan Kohler is a pediatric surgeon and health services researcher at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. He holds a Master’s degree in Health Communications and focuses his academic work on provider-patient and provider-provider communication strategies. He is particularly interested in developing effective, efficient telementoring tools to de-implement harmful and low-value care practices, including opioid overprescription. He is the director of the UW Department of Surgery’s Project ECHO telementoring program and is Director of Telementoring for the Surgical Collaborative of Wisconsin.
David Melnick, MD, MPH
David Melnick, MD, MPH, practices general surgery in Madison for UW Health and serves on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. Including his surgical residency, he has prescribed opioids for 21 years. He developed an interest in appropriate opioid prescribing practices after recognizing the magnitude of the problem and the potential impact surgeons can have in reducing the risk of opioid abuse.
Joseph Imbus, MD
Joseph Imbus, MD, is a General Surgery resident and graduate student in the MS Population Health program working with Dr. David Melnick on opioid-related surgical outcomes research. He is also a postdoctoral trainee on the T32 Surgical Oncology Training Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Nathan J. Rudin, MD
Dr. Rudin came to UW Health from Johns Hopkins in 2001. He directed the UW Health Pain Management Clinic for 11 years. An active clinician, teacher, author and researcher, he has served on national and statewide task forces developing guidelines for chronic pain management. Dr. Rudin will discuss tools available to surgeons to help patients manage pain, including setting patient expectations, the use of drugs and alternative therapies, and what happens if pain persists.
Tom Engels
Tom Engels was appointed Deputy Secretary of the Department of Health Services in February 2015. Tom is a member of the Governor’s Opioid Task Force representing the Department of Health Services. Prior to serving as the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Health Services, Tom served as the Deputy Secretary as well as the Assistant Deputy Secretary at the Department of Safety and Professional Services. Prior to his role at the Department of Safety and Professional Services, Tom served as the Vice President of Public Affairs for the Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin for many years. Tom has also served as the Government Affairs Director for the Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association and has previously held public service positions as then-Governor Tommy Thompson’s Deputy Press Secretary and as the Communications Director for the Senate Republican Caucus. He also held various staff positions in the State Senate and Assembly and held a position as the District Field Representative for former United States Congressman Scott Klug.