Williams News Logo
Grand Canyon News Logo

Trusted local news leader for Williams AZ and the Grand Canyon

Opioid hotline to launch, will provide real-time consultation

The Arizona Department of Health Services and Arizona’s Poison and Drug Information Centers are launching one of the nation’s first real-time, comprehensive hotlines for healthcare providers seeking consultation for complex patients with pain and opioid use disorder.

The free hotline, the Arizona Opioid Assistance and Referral Line, will operate 24 hours a day seven days a week and is answered by medical experts at Arizona’s Poison and Drug Information Centers to provide support to medical providers about a wide array of opioid-related issues.

“Preventing opioid overdoses and deaths in our state needs a multifaceted approach, and the new hotline is a major step forward as it will give medical providers immediate access to experts who can help to ensure safe prescribing and to identify treatment options for patients, which may or may not include opioids,” said Dr. Cara Christ, director of the Arizona Department of Health Services.

ADHS and Arizona’s Poison and Drug Information Centers are developing a new protocol that will include specific opioid-related information for providers, such as safe prescribing limits for opioid-naive patients, identification of potentially dangerous drug combinations, and chronic pain treatment options.

The Arizona Opioid Assistance and Referral Line will also include information for providers caring for patients who may be suffering from opioid use disorder. The hotline is supported by funding through the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System and the Arizona Department of Health Services.


Donate Report a Typo Contact