Opioid Medications for Pain Management
Presented by Sarah Murray
This course will discuss the use of opioids in the clinical setting. The pharmacology of the different types of opioids and the potential adverse effects on the human body will be explored. In addition, the course will explore the appropriate situations for opioid use for different patient populations. Lastly, the course will discuss the dilemmas of long-term opioid use and the potential for tolerance, dependence, and abuse. This course is most applicable to nurses, occupational therapists, and physical therapists in acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, long-term care, and home health settings.
Meet your instructor
Sarah Murray
Dr. Sarah J. Murray started her career as an Army combat medic in 1993, then went on to become a registered nurse, graduating from Northwestern State University of Louisiana in 1998. Since that time, she has earned an MSN in adult health nursing from the University of Texas at San Antonio in the clinical nurse specialist role…
Chapters & learning objectives
1. Basic Mechanisms of Opioids
This chapter will explore the history of human use of opioids for pain control and mechanisms that opioids have on the nervous system and other organ systems of the body. The chapter will also explain the psychological effects of opioids on the reward system of the brain.
2. General Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Opioids
This chapter will explain the common opioids based on the WHO classification system and review the routes of administration for these opioids. In addition, the chapter will explain the adverse immediate and long-term effects of opioids used in the clinical setting.
3. Appropriate Clinical Use of Opioids: System and Patient Perspectives
This chapter will explore the clinical situations and goals for opioid use in acute pain, cancer pain, and chronic noncancer pain.
More courses in this series
Principles of Pain Management: Neurobiology and The Multimodal Model
Sarah Murray
The Team Approach to Pain Assessment and Management
Sarah Murray
Mind Over Matter: Managing Pain Without Medications
Sarah Murray
Nonopioid Medications for Pain Management
Sarah Murray
Opioid Medications for Pain Management
Sarah Murray
When the Pain Won’t Go Away: Persistent Pain Management
Sarah Murray
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