October 25, 2022

Opioids & Chronic Pain Management - Amar Setty & Bryan Marascalchi

37 minutes

The opioid epidemic is something tangible that is affecting many populations and taking away a significant number of lives. On today’s episode of Straight Outta Health IT, we are honored to have two industry experts, Amar Setty and Bryan Marascalchi, talking about the opioid epidemic and what we can do to improve these drugs when used in pain management treatments.

The opioid epidemic has had several waves, starting in the late nineties and all through today. Many of these drugs are prescribed to patients and used during pain management, but more and more can be found developed illegally in the black market such as fentanyl. Dr. Amar Setty starts the conversation by laying the ground about why the prescribed opioid epidemic happened and stating that the opioid crisis is linked to chronic pain management, but is not the same. As Dr. Setty explains, proper pain management of an injury may prevent chronic pain, making it manageable, with solutions like his company Patient Premier. Addiction is usually a cause of improper pain management treatments. When patients get their medications off the street instead of under the guidance of a physician, they will tend to develop an addiction. This is what usually happens to vulnerable, poor, or racially-biased populations.

Then, Dr. Bryan Marascalchi shares a little bit of his journey in anesthesia and pain medicine and then dives deep into how communities and organizations can address the social determinants of health around the opioid epidemic. Together, Dr. Marascalchi and Dr. Setty talk about the mental health factor around the abuse of opioids, restating that if patients stick to the regime their physician has provided, they will be safe.

Patient Premier started as the link between technology and the several ways to improve the opioid addiction epidemic. Even though we believe pain is ultimately subjective, there are several ways to have metrics and analyze it. Through data analysis, Patient Premier is helping insurance companies and payers find the best ways to pay for the treatments and medications patients require. Both co-founders share their thoughts on the future of data and technology leveraging in the pain management space, stating their improvements, challenges, and expectations.

Tune in to this incredible episode about a well-misunderstood topic that everyone in the space needs to be aware of.

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