The American journal of nursing
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New guidance on inspections in health care settings.
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Experts say states should mandate child-resistant packaging.
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Prescription opioid abuse is at epidemic levels. Opioids diverted from friends and family members who have legitimate prescriptions are a major source of abused prescription opioids. ⋯ The authors propose three potential interventions in which nurses can play a critical role: teaching patients about the risks of opioid diversion, providing patients with information on the safekeeping and proper disposal of opioids, and tracking patients' analgesic use to improve our knowledge of prescription analgesic requirements for pain management. Nurses are in an ideal position to help reverse the occurrence and potentially fatal consequences of prescription opioid diversion.