Share
A reminder about prescribing high-potency narcotics for the treatment of opioid use disorder
Back to MessengerRead time: 1 minute
In 2022, amendments to Alberta’s Mental Health Services Protection Regulation impacted the prescribing of high-potency opioid narcotics for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD). Conventional opioid agonist treatments such as methadone and slow-release oral morphine (SROM) were not impacted by the amendment.
High-potency opioid narcotics include any full agonist opioid drug, such as:
- Hydromorphone
- Diacetylmorphine (pharmaceutical heroin)
- Fentanyl
- Morphine
- Oxycodone
High-potency opioid narcotics for OUD can only be prescribed through licensed AHS Opioid Dependency Programs for narcotic transition services. These medications must also be dispensed by AHS-contracted pharmacies. These requirements do not apply to high-potency opioids prescribed for treating chronic pain or other illnesses.
When prescribing a high-potency opioid narcotic to treat OUD, a corresponding indication must be provided on the TPP prescription form. For example:
- Under Indication for therapy, checking Opioid Agonist Therapy (OAT/ODT)
- Selecting Other (specify) and noting the following indications:
- Opioid Abuse Disorder (OAD)
- Opioid Addiction
- Opioid Use Disorder (OUD)
- Substance Use Disorder (SUD)
Resources:
- Narcotic Transition Services (Alberta Health)
- Opioid Dependency Program (Alberta Health Services)
- FAQs on the legislative changes (CPSA)
- Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT) Program (CPSA)
- Safe Prescribing for Opioid Use Disorder standard of practice and Advice to the Profession (CPSA)
If you have questions about prescribing to treat OUD, please email TPP.Info@cpsa.ab.ca.
Related News
All News & EventsJuly 21, 2023
Update from TPP Alberta: Forgeries
July 21, 2023
New electronic fax prescriptions from Connect Care coming July 25
June 8, 2023
A new practice improvement tool for Alberta physicians
June 8, 2023
Comments for this post are now closed. If you would like to share your feedback on this topic, please email support@cpsa.ca.