"I really had somebody in my corner." Patient experiences with a pharmacist-led opioid tapering program.

Background: Opioid tapering has been identified as an effective strategy to prevent the dangers associated with long-term opioid therapy for patients with chronic pain. However, many patients are resistant to tapering, and conversations about tapering can be challenging for health care providers. Pharmacists can play a role in supporting both providers and patients with the process of opioid tapering.

"We Need to Taper." Interviews with Clinicians and Pharmacists About Use of a Pharmacy-Led Opioid Tapering Program.

Objective: To identify factors that influence or interfere with referrals by primary care providers (PCPs) to a pharmacist-led telephone-based program to assist patients undergoing opioid tapering. The Support Team Onsite Resource for Management of Pain (STORM) program provides individualized patient care and supports PCPs in managing opioid tapers.

Design: Qualitative interviews were conducted with referring PCPs and STORM staff.

Factors associated with opioid-tapering success: A mixed methods study.

Objective: Opioid tapering is recommended when risks of chronic opioid use outweigh benefits. Little is known about patient characteristics or factors related to tapering success. We sought to identify characteristics that predict a 50% reduction in opioid use and qualitatively characterize factors that impact tapering success.

A Pharmacist-Led Program to Taper Opioid Use at Kaiser Permanente Northwest: Rationale, Design, and Evaluation.

Introduction: Primary care practitioners (PCPs) are concerned about adverse effects and poor outcomes of opioid use but may find opioid tapering difficult because of a lack of pain management training or time constraints limiting patient counseling. In 2010, Kaiser Permanente Northwest implemented a pharmacist-led opioid tapering program-Support Team Onsite Resource for Management of Pain (STORM)-to address high rates of opioid use, alleviate PCPs' workload demands, and improve patient outcomes.

Objective: To describe the rationale, structure, and delivery of this unique pharmacist-led program, which partners with PCPs and provides individualized care to help patients reduce opioid use, and the Facilitating Lower Opioid Amounts through Tapering study, which examines the program's effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and implementation.