I-COPE Study: Opioid Use and Pain Management in Older Adults

I-COPE program intervention includes four components: patient survey, geriatric PCCDS tool, patient action plan, and provider education. Patient survey. Three days before each of their scheduled PCP visits, patients will be asked to complete a survey during electronic check-in. If patients have not completed the questionnaire when they arrive on the day of their appointment, they will be asked by the patient services representatives to complete it in the waiting area on paper or using a tablet, or by the medical assistant to complete it during patient triage. In addition to the I-COPE survey patients will be screened for depression and drug abuse. Medical assistants will be trained to enter their responses into the EHR. A caregiver may help the patient complete the questionnaire. Responses will be saved in the patient's medical record and accessible to their care team. Geriatric PCCDS tool. Information from the patient questionnaire and the EHR will be used to automatically generate a passive alert (best practice advisory) and a tailored smart set which PCPs can open during the visit. The alert will be triggered if a patient responds that they want to discuss pain at their visit or if they screen positive for a possible substance use disorder. The PCCDS was designed with a set of decision rules based on AGS and CDC guidelines for chronic pain and opioids. The PCCDS tool features five sections: All patients (self-management strategies), Oral non-opioid medications, Acute-on-chronic pain only, Opioid medications, and OUD treatment. The PCCDS shows which treatment options are recommended, not recommended, or contraindicated based on the patient's history, comorbidities, and preferences. For instance, if a patient screens positive for depression the Antidepressants smartgroup within the Oral non-opioid medications section will be open and labelled as recommended. Alternative versions of other smartgroups exist for patients with chronic kidney disease of various stages, presence of certain medication, and results of the drug abuse screening. The PCCDS tool also includes links to a conversation tool and patient self-management education tools. The PCCDS tool may be accessed by a provider in cases where patient did not complete the survey. Patient action plan. At the end of the visit, a personalized action plan will be generated for patients featuring their pain rating and goal, the treatment plan they agreed upon with their PCP, and relevant educational materials. The action plan will be clearly laid out using patient-centered language, maximum 6th grade reading level, and simple graphics. It will be printed out as a part of the after-visit summary. Provider education. PCPs may opt into an intensive Project ECHO course that offers more geriatric clinical content and EHR updates with real-word cases. Project ECHO (Extension for Community Health Outcomes) is an innovative workforce development model for expanding primary care capacity in underserved communities. It uses videoconferencing technology to "telementor" community-based clinicians via didactic education, group problem solving with actual cases brought by clinicians, and expert advice on implementing best practices. Project ECHO® is possibly a cost-effective strategy for improving clinician competence and behaviors, while likely improving patient outcomes. The curriculum will be delivered in 8-weekly hour-long sessions. Each session will include didactic topics delivered by an interdisciplinary team of content experts, and two 15-minute problem-solving exercises using real-world cases brought by participating PCPs. PCPs will review how they can use the I-COPE Program toolkit with each case. Didactic content will include a walkthrough of the PCCDS and education on the demographics of pain and OUD, special considerations for pain management (e.g., cognitive impairment, functional impairment, social determinants, and caregivers), principles of SDM and assessing patient preferences, pharmacology and pain medications, non-pharmacologic pain management options, and recognition and management of OUD. The abridged version of the ECHO training will be made available online for PCPs to access on their own time if needed.