Introduction
The problem of substance use is a serious problem for modern nursing to address. At present, $78.5 billion people suffer from opioid use (National Institute on Drug Abuse, n.d.). Due to the devastating effects of substance abuse, it is critical to prevent the aggravation of the issue. For this purpose, the use of the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) technique has to be considered (SBIRT Education, 2015). The specified tool allows locating a source of concern early and manage it in a timely fashion, which makes it a crucial component of diagnosing and treating substance use.
SBIRT description
Screening
In the described case, the Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) should be used to diagnose the problem. The specified screening tool will help patients to shape their behavior regarding substance use (World Health Organization, n.d.). Furthermore, the results of the test will inform the following intervention strategy.
Brief Intervention (BI)
The BI stage will include a change in patients’ perception of the issue. A BI aimed at encouraging a patient to change his current behavior will be needed (DiClemente, Crouch, Norwood, Delahanty, & Welsh, 2015). Particularly, the BI should focus on helping patients to restore their connection to their family members and gain their support to motivate them to recover.
Referral to Treatment (RTT)
Patients will be provided with brief treatment, which will incorporate other factors that motivate the patient to manage his substance use disorder. A nurse will discuss socioeconomic issues with them, exploring the solutions to some of their current problems with finances. The support of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSA) as an important resource will also be discussed (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2018). Finally, the lack of social support will be addressed by helping patients to regain the trust of his friends.
Video Description
The problem of opioid use is a common issue in modern American society. The video by Wall Street Journal (2017) shows that the specified health concern has grown out of proportions and, therefore needs an urgent intervention. The video introduces a pre-charge program, which is expected to assist people with opioid addictions in managing them.
Problem Description
The problem of opioid addiction is rather common in the local community. A vast range of people who come from a poor socioeconomic background and do not have proper healthcare options are affected by this problem. Obtaining patients’ personal information and medical history for the purpose of improving the quality of care for substance use is critical (see Appendix A). Furthermore, financial struggles and family relationships need to be addressed to manage this problem. The use of drugs such as Oxycodone to address a severe chronic pain typically causes the development of an opioid addiction in patients (Stringer & Baker, 2015). Being unable to manage the problem himself, patients need to ask for assistance from a local healthcare facility, yet the social stigma may affect their decisions. Moreover, patients are under a constant threat of relapse and, thus experience significant stress.
Community Resources
In managing substance use disorders, one needs to ensure community support. Unfortunately, a plethora of myths about substance use currently circulate the global community, hampering the treatment of the problem in a number of patients (Stringer & Baker, 2015). Therefore, information resources have to be used to build awareness and reduce the harmful impact of myths linked to substance use. For instance, one may use the support of the SBIRT Education (2015) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (n.d.). The SBIRT Education (2015) provides information about the application of the SBIRT strategy to enhance the recovery process. In turn, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (n.d.) offers general information required for patient education and health promotion.
Conclusions
Because of the opportunity to locate and manage substance use issues, the SBIRT tool has to be introduced into the contemporary nursing setting. In the case under analysis, patients will require a detailed SBIRT assessment to produce an appropriate treatment strategy and prevent comorbid diseases from developing. Therefore, the application of SBIRT offers a chance to allocate available resources and utilize them properly to meet a patient’s needs. Furthermore, the framework should be integrated into the community as a precautionary measure for handling the instances of substance use. As a result, the problem of addictive disorders will be addressed in the community.
References
DiClemente, C. C., Crouch, T. B., Norwood, A. E. Q., Delahanty, J., & Welsh, C. (2015). Evaluating training of screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for substance use: Reliability of the MD3 SBIRT Coding Scale. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 29(1), 218-224. doi:10.1037/adb0000022
National Institute on Drug Abuse. (n.d.). Trends & statistics.
SBIRT Education. (2015). Overview of SBIRT: A nursing response to the full spectrum of substance use [Video file].
Stringer, K. L., & Baker, E. H. (2018). Stigma as a barrier to substance abuse treatment among those with unmet need: An analysis of parenthood and marital status. Journal of Family Issues, 39(1), 3-27. doi:10.1177%2F0192513X15581659
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2018). SAMHSA’s national helpline – 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
Wall Street Journal. (2017). American epidemic: The nation’s struggle with opioid addiction[Video file].
World Health Organization. (n.d.). The ASSIST project – Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test. Web.