CRISM is currently working on creating a National Guideline for Best Practices in the Clinical Management of Opioid Use Disorders as a CRISM-wide knowledge translation project.
The national guideline will be based on
A Guideline for the Clinical Management of Opioid Addiction, which was published by Providence Health Care and Vancouver Coastal Health in 2015 under the lead of CRISM British Columbia’s Dr. Evan Wood. These British Columbia guideline gives recommendations on the full range of therapeutic options for the optimal treatment of opioid use disorder.
The objectives of the national guideline are to educate health care providers on the range of treatments available for opioid use disorder, to provide the scientific evidence that validates these treatments, and to provide recommendations on the use of these treatments. The guideline will provide an evidence review and make recommendations for treatment, depending on the circumstances and condition of the patient.
As a CRISM-wide initiative, the national guideline is currently being drafted based on national and international scientific evidence. The guideline will be peer-reviewed by regional committees across Canada. Once finalized, CRISM will publicly release the guideline, which we anticipate will be particularly relevant to health care and addiction service providers in the context of increasing opioid use and opioid-related overdoses across Canada.