13 Apr Pain Management of Veterans
Studies show that soldiers and veterans have some of the highest rates of opioid use in the United States. A 2011 report by the American Public Health Association stated that the fatal overdose rate of opioids among veterans is nearly double the national average, mostly due greater occurrences of physical trauma. The House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations recently met with Veterans Administration (VA) officials to discuss the state of opioid use and treatment in VA medical centers. The House committee expressed concern about inefficiency in evaluating effective alternative treatments and the lack of widespread approaches to the larger problem. VA officials spoke to innovative pain management techniques resulting in reduced opioid use among their patients, though Congress continued to question their overall progress. At Illinois Pain Institute, we strive to reduce or eliminate opiate use by precisely diagnosing and fixing the underlying problem causing the painful condition.