The American surgeon
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The American surgeon · Jun 2020
Observational StudyAssessment of Unused Opioids Following Ambulatory Surgery.
Surgery is a risk factor for opioid initiation and subsequent abuse. Discharge opioid prescription patterns after surgery are often varied and not evidence based, which may lead to unnecessary prescription of opioids. We aimed to assess opioid prescribing and unused opioid prescriptions in ambulatory surgery patients at our academic hospital. ⋯ Opioid prescribing and unused opioid prescriptions are prevalent in our hospital's ambulatory surgical population. Patients undergoing selected ambulatory surgical procedures may not require as much opioid as is currently being prescribed.
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The American surgeon · Jun 2020
US Rural Surgeon Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Leadership in a Time of Crisis.
Nine surgeons from rural and remote communities in the United States share early experiences preparing for the COVID-19 pandemic. Relating experiences remarkably different from health care providers in urban areas in America most affected by the first stages of the outbreak, they tell the challenges of organizing resources in facilities already struggling with poverty-stricken communities far from established health care resources and supplies. From Alaska to Appalachia and the Navajo Nation to the rural midwest, they show the leadership and professionalism that exemplify rural surgery.