Bones, groans and sending patients home: Perioperative opioid-related harm reduction strategy utilisation in a regional New South Wales (NSW) hospital.

Objective: Perioperative initiation of opioids continues to be a major contributor to chronic use, misuse and diversion in regional areas. There is considerable effort to mitigate harm through avoiding excessive prescribing and reducing the risk of persistent postoperative opioid use. Improving perioperative documentation practices has been reported to ensure appropriate opioid initiation and de-escalation. It has not been established whether these strategies are utilised in regional hospitals.

Methods: A retrospective observational study of perioperative opioid prescribing and documentation practices in Goulburn Base Hospital, a regional centre in the Southern New South Wales (NSW) Local Health District. Data were collected from 110 records and validated for adult patients undergoing elective total knee replacement (TKR) or total hip replacement (THR) from 12 January 2020 to 13 January 2021.

Outcome Measures: To observe perioperative opioid prescribing and utilisation of harm reduction strategies in a regional hospital.

Results: 65% of patients were opioid naïve (ON). Preoperative pain assessments and patient education were completed in 23% and 15% of records, respectively. Postoperative opioids were prescribed for 99% of patients, with 74% prescribed a slow-release (SR) formulation. 50% of patients were discharged with an SR prescription. Inadequate postoperative pain control was reported in 21% of patients. Of the 103 patients prescribed opioids on discharge, only 20% included a de-escalation plan and only 35% of discharge summaries included dose and quantity of opioids supplies.

Conclusions: This study has identified underutilisation of perioperative harm reduction strategies despite the potential to improve appropriate initiation and de-escalation of opioids. These findings highlight opportunities for improvement in regional hospitals.