• Adam W Henderson, Kavita M Babu, Roland C Merchant, and Francesca L Beaudoin.
• Medical Student, The Department of Emergency Medicine, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI.
• R I Med J (2013). 2015 Mar 3; 98 (3): 28-31.

AbstractBecause of the multitude of financial, health, and social problems associated with prescription opioid misuse, effective methods of identifying older adults who are misusing these medications are needed. We conducted a pilot investigation to determine the prevalence of previous and current prescription opioid use among older adults visiting the Rhode Island Hospital Emergency Department and their need for opioid misuse interventions. Among 88 randomly selected older adults (≥ 65 years of age) presenting to the ED with sub-critical illness or injury, 19% (95% CI: 11-27%) were current opioid users and 6% (95% CI: 4-8%) would require an intervention for prescription opioid misuse. We identified problems of improper acquisition, diversion, provider refusal to prescribe opioids, hoarding, and inappropriate use of opioids among this population. Emergency medicine clinicians should query their older adult patients about prescription opioid misuse and associated problematic behaviors.

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