Millennium Laboratories Sponsors Physician Education on Safe Opioid Prescribing at American Academy of Pain Medicine Annual Meeting

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Millennium Laboratories announced today new initiatives that support responsible and safe pain medication prescribing practices that lead to better patient outcomes. At this week's American Academy of Pain Medicine (AAPM) Annual Meeting, Millennium is sponsoring two educational initiatives: a two-day seminar on safe opioid prescribing practices; and a symposium to address medication-taking behaviors of pain patients and the clinical value of medication monitoring to minimize adverse events caused by misuse and abuse. Additionally, the company will be a Premier Executive Member on the organization's Corporate Relations Council.

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"Millennium has long been an advocate for supporting physicians with research and education on safe prescribing of pain medication, and we feel these sponsored events are timely given the state of drug misuse and abuse in society. These education activities support our commitment to provide scientific data to allow physicians to make informed prescribing decisions as they care for people suffering from pain or addiction to prescribed medications," said Howard Appel, President of Millennium Laboratories. "We are proud to have a role on AAPM's esteemed Corporate Relations Council, where we will work to further our mission of improving the lives of people who suffer from pain with visionary ideas, research and educational programming."

At AAPM, Millennium is a gold sponsor of a two-day educational course titled, "Safe Opioid Prescribing," which will engage 300 primary care physicians and clinicians in a discussion on safe prescribing practices of opioids. The course features expert-led sessions covering topics such as how to identify causes of the abuse, misuse and unintentional deaths related to opioid analgesic use in the treatment of chronic pain. Registration for this course is available on-site at AAPM.

Additionally, Millennium will host a breakfast symposium, "Patient Centered Monitoring and Medication Taking Behaviors in the Pain Patient Population." This program, led by Lora Brown, M.D., Pain Management Specialist, Coastal Orthopedics & Pain Management, Bradenton, Florida, and Jennifer Strickland, Pharm.D., Adjunct Professor, University of Florida College of Pharmacy, will review comprehensive data on medication-taking behaviors of pain patients and discuss the benefits of urinary drug testing as an important tool in safe prescribing of pain medication.

"Medication monitoring for the pain population is essential for physicians to provide a comprehensive treatment plan," said Dr. Lora Brown. "The most common medication monitoring method, urine drug testing, can provide physicians with a more complete medication profile to help prevent harmful drug-drug interactions in a patient's prescription regimen, which is increasingly important as deaths from prescription medication overdose are more common than ever before."

A key component of Millennium's commitment to education is to elevate the responsibility and integrity with which medication monitoring companies operate and interact with physicians. The company announced earlier this month the provision of a grant to Richard Payne, M.D., Professor of Medicine and Divinity at Duke University, to chair a stakeholders' summit inviting leading pain and physician associations, regulators, and other stakeholders to establish clear and specific guidelines to which each laboratory can be held accountable.

As a member of AAPM's Corporate Relations Council, Millennium will engage with industry thought leaders on these key topics as well as current and future trends in the field of pain with the ultimate goal of improving patient care. As the newest Premier Executive member, Millennium joins the elite ranks of Medtronic, Endo Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly & Company, Pfizer, Abbott Laboratories, Teva Pharmaceuticals and other leading healthcare companies.

The Millennium Research Institute, a nonprofit national research center formed in 2010 by Millennium Laboratories, also will be presenting scientific data at the AAPM Meeting through its partnership with the University of California, San Diego. A full list of the posters, their presentation times and locations will be available at Millennium Laboratories' booth #324 in the main AAPM exhibit hall.

About Millennium Laboratories
Millennium Laboratories is located in San Diego's life sciences cluster and is the leading research-based clinical diagnostic company dedicated to improving the lives of people suffering from pain. The company provides healthcare professionals with the scientific data, clinical tools and services that help personalize treatment plans to improve clinical outcomes and patient safety.

The company utilizes leading technology and proprietary methodologies to provide some of the fastest and most reliable medication monitoring results via both urine drug testing (UDT) and oral fluid testing. Test results are backed by expert toxicologists, clinical guidance and dedicated customer service.

Millennium's commitment to advancing the science and the field of pain management also includes a strong focus on the advancement of industry research, education and advocacy.  Through its association with the Millennium Research Institute, a nonprofit national research center, it has quickly gained respect as a leader in toxicology, pharmacology and pain management research and education, providing healthcare professionals with innovative research to advance the assessment and management of chronic pain. 

SOURCE Millennium Laboratories