The latest Project Echo® started this afternoon at CHC.  These are teleconferences where experts help primary care providers in handling specific topics.  The new topic is Buprenorphine, which is often used to help patients with drug addictions.  Like other Project Echo topics, when these can be complicated cases requiring great team work.

Dr. Haddad explains it this way,

We are including behavioral health, nursing, and the medical assistants because they all are integral to the success of the program and to the success of treatment. Through experience, we have learned that all these disciplines need to work together and be involved in the treatment plans. As you know or will find out, most of our patients on buprenorphine are in desperate need of behavioral health, and that our nurses and medical assistants have a huge role to play in their care, whether it is seeing the patients for nursing visits, or rooming the patients and collecting toxicology screens, and fielding phone calls.

Through Project Echo, we have been able to expand our services for complicated conditions and provide our staff supportive team-based environment for tackling these challenges.