Well before the opioid crisis was recognized and attention was directed to opioid-related deaths, clinicians cited issues related to opioids as a principal reason why they didn’t enjoy caring for patients with chronic pain.1 Now, many physicians and advanced care practitioners (nurse practitioners and physician assistants) have decided that the risk associated with prescribing opioids is too high. Some clinics, particularly in locations with high rates of opioid misuse, have established policies of not prescribing opioids at all.
Read more here: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1713159