Health

COVID-19 has intensified the need for opioid stewardship programs. Last year marked the highest number of opioid-related deaths. Acute care hospitals with well-designed opioid stewardship programs can help address this issue.

Compounding pharmacies must keep their focus on how best to maintain both patient and worker safety. Four concepts will be particularly important.

Advising patients on cannabis use can be challenging for clinicians – while it’s legal or approved for medical use in many U.S. states, because it’s illegal at the federal level, there’s lack of clinical standards and knowledge about interactions.

A review of case data found that more than 70% of COVID-19 patients received antimicrobial treatment despite less than 10% having bacterial or fungal co-infections – amplifying risks for antimicrobial resistance. Experts discuss how to change that.