As the medication experts on the patient’s health care team, pharmacists play an important role in chronic pain management and the prevention of misuse and abuse of opioids—a national epidemic that takes the lives of more than 115 people in the United States every day.

Two members of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), Sondra M. Adkinson, Pharm.D., C.P.E., and Nicholas E. Hagemeier, Pharm.D., Ph.D., have been appointed to the new Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force (Task Force), recently established through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The Task Force will assess best practices and issue recommendations that address gaps or inconsistencies for managing chronic and acute pain.

APhA supports a comprehensive, integrated approach to the treatment of chronic pain and encourages mechanisms to enhance collaboration between pharmacists and other health care providers. Incorporating pharmacists’ knowledge, expertise, and clinical judgement into the Task Force recognizes the value of their perspectives and provides an opportunity for pharmacists to have a positive impact on broad national initiatives that aim to improve patient care.

“Dr. Adkinson and Dr. Hagemeier are excellent choices for the Task Force. Their combined skill sets include significant research contributions specific to the opioid epidemic in rural settings, proficiency in interprofessional relationships and team-based care models, and experience caring for patients in different settings,” said APhA Executive Vice President and CEO Thomas E. Menighan, BSPharm, MBA, ScD (Hon), FAPhA.