Cohen center launches adolescent substance abuse survey to combat opioid epidemic

Rebecca Klar
The Cohen Children's Medical Center began a new initiative to combat the opioid epidemic through surveying adolescent patients. (Photo courtesy of Northwell Health)

Northwell Health’s Cohen Children’s Medical Center announced a new initiative to combat the opioid epidemic by asking all patients 12 and older about substance abuse when they visit the hospital.

“This is one of many steps we are taking across the Northwell health system to help our communities combat this national health crisis,” Dr. Jay Enden, chair of the health system’s Opioid Management Steering Committee, said in a news release. “It is a vital step to standardized practices that better address substance use and the opioid crisis.”

The initiative is an expansion of the current Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment Program, which uses a “We Ask Everyone” process.

The protocol, originally instituted for adult patients, is designed to universally screen patients with evidence-based questions to determine the patient’s level of risk, according to the release.

Children and adolescents are affected by this crisis as much as adults, Dr. Charles Schleien, executive director of Cohen Children’s Medical Center, said in the release. 

According to the federal Centers for Disease Control’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, in 2015 7.6 percent of New York State high school students used cocaine, 4.8 percent used heroin and 3.4 percent injected illegal drugs.

Those rates are higher than the nationwide reported use for students of 5.2 percent, 2.1 percent and 1.8 percent, according to the release.

“Adolescence is a critical time due to the exponential risk for abuse and addiction among those who start using substances before the age of 18 compared to those who do not start use until adulthood,” Dr. Jahn Avarello, division chief of pediatric emergency medicine at Cohen, said in the release. 

The survey helps doctors engage and discuss substance abuse with patients, Avarello said.

Dr. Sandeep Kappor, director of Northwell’s Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment Program, said normalizing the conversation builds trust with patients. 

Kappor added that by valuing the importance of identifying substance abuse, “we are taking a step in the right direction.”

The Cohen Children’s Medical Center and the Northwell Opioid Management Steering Committee also reached out to school superintendents in Nassau and Suffolk during the first week of January with the survey. 

Schleien said it is essential that efforts across Long Island are coordinated to effectively combat the opioid crisis.

“With the understanding that there is no stand-alone solution, education and awareness are critical elements in making a positive impact in our communities,” Schleien said. “We are confident that building bridges and forming partnerships with our surrounding school systems and community organizations will better align efforts currently underway, and provide opportunities for innovation and dissemination.”

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