SUPPORT for ME Statewide SUD Learning Community’s Project ECHO: Support and Expand Access to MOUD (Adults)
The Co-Occurring Collaborative Serving Maine, in partnership with the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, is launching Project ECHO: Support and Expand Access to Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD). This Project ECHO is funded through the SUPPORT for ME Statewide Substance Use Disorder Learning Community by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services. The purpose is to support Prescribing Clinicians and their Teams to provide evidence-based treatment to individuals and their families affected by Substance Use Disorders and Opioid Use Disorder (SUD/OUD) to reduce drug overdose deaths and the suffering. The Statewide SUD Learning Community offers an array of education and support modalities for Prescribers and their entire Practice Teams, including this Project ECHO Program.
This seven-month Project ECHO brings together prescribers with or without their teams across settings in various phases of MAT implementation to learn, teach and support each other in their efforts to address the often complex needs of the people they serve.
Project ECHO: Project ECHO® (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a guided practice model developed by the University of New Mexico’s Health Sciences Center to increase knowledge and skills. This approach involves cased based learning across expert faculty and participants through regularly scheduled meetings via video conferencing.
Intended Audience:
Prescribing Clinicians (physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants) with and without their Medical Practice Teams within primary care or specialty care settings in Maine who are interested in initiating, expanding, and sustaining MAT and addressing the complexities that accompany OUDs in adults.
Learning objectives:
• Build competencies to deliver and expand Evidenced-based MOUD and integrated behavioral health treatment;
• Acquire knowledge and skills to address co-occurring mental health and poly-substance use; and
• Connect and develop support from a network of treatment professionals across Maine
• Expand team-based models for addiction treatment;
Potential Didactics Topics:
• Tips on using and acquiring XR buprenorphine
• Revised OHH rules/Primary C +
• Co-occurring mental health and health complexities
• Poly-substances and stimulants (separate ECHO on stimulants/Contingency Management to be scheduled this coming winter)
• Workflows – implementation, expansion
• Engagement and harm reduction
• Use of Peers in multidisciplinary teams
Commitment:
• Participate in seven (7) one-hour monthly case-based learning sessions using a virtual meeting platform (Zoom)
• Each Practice Care Team to present at least one de-identified patient case presentation
• Complete a pre-assessment and post-assessment at the beginning and end of the program.
• Provide requested data points for baseline and post-session measurement:
o number of patients being treated with MOUD by participating providers and by practice
o number of providers in the clinic who are X-waivered
• Complete CME evaluation surveys to help with ongoing quality improvement efforts.
• Participants can receive one hour of Category 1 AMA CME credit for each virtual learning session.
Program Schedule:
Sessions will be held on a monthly schedule outlined below. Sessions will be held on the 4th Wednesday each month from Noon -1:00 PM and include a brief didactic presentation from an ECHO faculty member on a pre-determined topic, followed by a case presentation from a practice care team member/or prescriber.
• August 24, 12 noon to 1 PM
• September 28, 12 noon to 1 PM
• October 26, 12 noon to 1 PM
• November 23, 12 noon to 1 PM
• December 28, 12 noon to 1 PM
• January 25, 12 noon to 1 PM
• February 22, 12 noon to 1 PM
Speakers
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Eric HaramLADCEric Haram, LADC is owner of Haram Consulting LLC, whose aim is to improve community health and safety from the impact of substance use disorders, by providing consulting and technical assistance in the areas of strategic planning, workforce development and systems improvement for States, Counties and Organizations. Eric has 30 years experience delivering, designing, and directing substance use treatment services in hospitals, correctional facilities, court systems and community behavioral health centers. Haram Consulting, LLC provides consultation in 11 states, from California to West Virginia, including his home state of Maine where he directs behavioral health services for York Hospital.
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Eva QuirionNP, PhD, FacultyDr. Quirion is a graduate of The University of Maine, Orono and the University of Phoenix. She joined an interventional pain practice after receiving her FNP certification. She then joined St. Joseph Healthcare in 2014 as a Pain Care provider embedded in primary care. Eva has been working with patients to help them manage their chronic pain. She has worked closely with primary care providers to improve patient safety related to chronic pain medications and other controlled substances. She has become an expert at tapering chronic controlled substances with compassion. The uncovering of undiagnosed substance use disorder led Eva to work with the St. Joseph’s MOUD team. At this time, Eva manages over 100 patients who are on suboxone for substance use disorder. The recovery group has also offers sublocade (injectable buprenorphine) as an additional treatment option for those with opioid use disorder. Eva’s dissertation topic is Compassion Fatigue Among Nurse Practitioners in Maine. She became interested in compassion early in her career and works to promote compassion as a therapeutic tool in patient care. In addition to clinical practice, Eva is also serving as faculty in the University of Maine’s NP program. Eva’s greatest joys are her husband, two daughters, and granddaughter. She enjoys flower gardening and back yard bird watching.
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Jonathan FellersMD, PA LLCDr. Fellers, MD, PA LLC is an addiction psychiatrist who works with patients, families, and our health care system to promote high quality evidence-based screening, assessment, and treatment for substance use disorders and co-occurring mental disorders. Dr. Fellers held various roles in medical and graduate medical education over the past 10 years, serving as a lecturer, mentor, site supervisor, rotation supervisor, and program director. Skilled in public speaking, he has delivered presentations at the local, regional, and national level and is a frequent presenter for continuing medical education through Grand Rounds, webinars, and conferences. He developed from the ground up the curriculum for the newly formed Addiction Medicine fellowship at Maine Medical Center. He has participated and presented at several ECHO programs during his time at MaineHealth. Currently, Dr. Fellers serves as Medical Director for two treatments programs. At Crossroads, he oversees the delivery of gender-responsive addiction, eating disorder, and behavioral health treatments for women in two residential programs and two IOPs. Through Foundation House, he supervises an extended care residential program that combines transitional sober living with clinical services (including IOP) for men age 17 to 35. He operates a small private practice and serves on the Board of the Portland Community Recovery Center and the Law and Addiction Committee for the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.
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Kinna ThakararDO, MPHDr. Kinna Thakarar is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Maine Medical Center/Tufts University School of Medicine in Portland, Maine. She is board-certified in internal medicine, infectious diseases, and addiction medicine and has a special interest in health services research related to the ID/ substance use disorder syndemic. She completed ID fellowship and additional addiction medicine training at Boston Medical Center. She provides infectious disease and addiction medicine care at a variety of sites, including, MMC, MMP ID, Preble Street Learning Collaborative, and also precepts trainees at the Gilman (HIV/hepatitis) clinic in Portland.
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Randy MorrisonMPPM, MPH, CIPSSRandy Morrison (he/him) is a person who personally understands the challenges of navigating substance use and mental health concerns. He is a Certified Intentional Peer Support (IPS) Specialist, IPS Trainer, and CCAR Recovery Coach trainer; and has a master’s in public health and a master’s in policy, planning and management. Randy spent over seven years leading the growth and implementation of peer support programs across Maine’s largest healthcare system before becoming a full-time trainer and consultant. During his time as a senior leader, he grew a peer support team of 3 peer supporters to over 65, the largest in Maine. The programs spanned substance use peer support, mental health peer support, youth peer support, and family/parent peer support. Those positions worked in a variety of settings as well, including emergency departments, primary care, behavioral health clinics, youth early intervention programs, case management programs, and four peer support centers. Randy was a co-author on a manual for integrating peer support into multidisciplinary and clinical settings. Randy is passionate about peer support fidelity and creating systems that center the people utilizing them.
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Stephanie NicholsPharmD, BCPS, BCPPStephanie Nichols, PharmD, BCPS, BCPP is an Associate Professor in the University of New England College of Pharmacy, Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry in the Tufts University School of Medicine, and a Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Pharmacist at Maine Medical Center in Portland. She graduated from the University at Buffalo with her Doctor of Pharmacy degree and completed an Inpatient Pharmacy Practice Residency at Maine Medical Center. Dr. Nichols is dual board certified as a Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS) and a Psychiatric Pharmacist (BCPP) and is a fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (FCCP).
