Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT)                  Telephone (240) 276-2717       

1Choke Cherry Road, Room 2-1065                                     Facsimile (240) 276-1630

Rockville, Maryland 20857                                                        E-mail: Todd.Rosendale@samhsa.hhs.gov

Division of Pharmacologic Therapies             DPT

C. Todd Rosendale, MA

Public Health Advisor

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FACSIMILE

    AInformation Memorandum@

 

This facsimile is intended only for the addressee indicated                                                                                                     below, and any review, dissemination or use of this trans-                                                                                                     mission or its contents by persons other than the addressee                                                                                                           is strictly prohibited in accordance with 42 CFR Part 2,                                                                                                   Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records

TO:                 State Methadone Authorities

                        Opioid Treatment Programs:

                                    Alabama, Arkansas, Florida,

                                    Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,

                                     Missouri, N. Carolina, S. Carolina,

                                     Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas

 

FROM:           C. Todd Rosendale, MA

 

RE:                  Emergency Medication for Patients of Programs

                                    Impacted by Hurricane Katrina        

 

DATE:                        August 31, 2005

 

 

 

The Division of Pharmacologic Therapies is aware of the growing need to provide access to medication for the large number of patients displaced from the programs impacted either directly or indirectly by Hurricane Katrina, and we have the following guidance relative to the provision of emergency medication to those persons identifying themselves as patients of one of the affected treatment programs.  Many of the patients you encounter will not only need medication, they will also have suffered the loss of their residence and have no assurance as to when and where they will relocate.  Therefore, please include a large dose of compassion with your usual due caution when dispensing methadone.

 

Emergency Guidance:

 

~          All necessary identification and dosing information relative to patients of the DRD New Orleans Medical Clinic can be ascertained by calling (800) 447-8801 and asking for Janet or Laura.

 

~          If you are unable to contact the patient’s home program, the following procedures should be combined with your existing emergency plans:

 

1)      The emergency guest patient should show valid picture identification which includes an address in close proximity to the areas impacted by Hurricane Katrina.

2)      The patient should show some type of proof that indicates they were receiving services from a clinic located in one of the devastated areas (medication bottle, program identification card, receipt for payment of fees, etc.).  In cases where the patient does not have any items of proof, the program may use their best clinical/medical judgment, possibly combined with a stat drug test for the presence of methadone (dip stick, etc.).

3)      The program may administer the amount of medication that the patient reports as their current dose; however, remind each patient that the dose they report will be verified with the home program ASAP.  In cases where the reported dose appears questionable, it is best to use good medical judgment when determining the dose level.

4)      Emergency guest patients should be medicated daily with take-home doses provided only for days that the program is closed (Sundays and holidays).  In the case of a patient who must travel an extreme distance to receive the medication, take-home medication may be considered via the SMA-168 Request for Exception process.

5)      The submission of an SMA-168 Request for Exception to CSAT will not be necessary for the emergency guest patient; however, the following information should be collected daily and submitted to CSAT when all patients have returned to their home programs or have been permanently relocated to another program:

a)                  assign each patient a guest clinic identification number and compile a temporary chart.

b)                  attempt to contact the home program of the emergency guest patient each day prior to administering the medication and record the result in the temporary chart.

c)                  record the day, date and amount of medication administered to each patient along with any observations made by the staff person.

 

Should there be any questions or issues not covered in this Information Memorandum, please feel free to call me at (240) 276-2717. 

 

The Medication Assisted Treatment community of OTPs should be very proud.  Their immediate offers of assistance and outpouring of concern to the patients whose lives have been impacted so drastically has been gratifying.     

 

We have attached contact information for 37 OTPs in three states to aid in contacting the home programs for displaced patients.