BMC MAT Quick Start

Evidence-based guidance, decision trees, tools & resources to help clinicians treat OUD & AUD, initiate meds, manage pain, and support patient care.

Start and manage treatment with buprenorphine or naltrexone using evidence-based guidance, decision trees, and tools for OUD, AUD, and pain care.

This app offers healthcare providers the latest evidence-based guidance for treating opioid and alcohol use disorders (OUD and AUD) assisting in the initiation of medications such as buprenorphine and naltrexone. This is an essential tool for those starting patients on these medications, providing step-by-step clinical decision trees and valuable resources for managing not only AUD and OUD but acute and chronic pain for patients already on buprenorphine or naltrexone. With interactive tools, treatment protocols, and patient messaging features, this app empowers clinicians to deliver life-saving care while improving treatment outcomes for substance use disorders.

More than 54.2 million people aged 12 or older (19.1% of the US population) needed substance use treatment in 2023. However, only about 12.8 million (4.5%) received any treatment for their SUD. Providing addiction treatment, including the use of FDA-approved medications and behavioral health therapies, has been shown to save lives and increase retention in treatment.

The interactive decision trees in this app walk you through each step of the clinical decision-making process to help you care for patients with an OUD or AUD. The clinical decision trees are also available in PDF format for easy viewing along with ability to securely text message patient tools to get started on buprenorphine. Additionally, several other clinical tools and resources related to SUD are included.

BMC MAT QUICK START FEATURES:

CLINICAL DECISION TREES
* Buprenorphine Initiation Guide: Decision trees for starting patients with an opioid use disorder on buprenorphine who are not currently physically dependent on opioids, opioid-dependent and not yet in withdrawal, and opioid-dependent and in active withdrawal.
* Initiation of Extended-Release Injectable Buprenorphine: Guidance for starting a patient on new weekly and monthly formulations of extended-release injectable buprenorphine.
* Naltrexone Initiation for Alcohol Use Disorder: Guidance for starting a patient on naltrexone for the treatment of alcohol use disorder.
* Naltrexone Initiation for Opioid Use Disorder: Guidance for starting a patient on naltrexone for the treatment of opioid use disorder. Includes strategies for managing opioid withdrawal during the required “washout period” prior to starting naltrexone and avoiding precipitated withdrawal.
* Pain Management While on Buprenorphine for Opioid Use Disorder: Guidance for managing acute and chronic pain in patients already on buprenorphine for opioid use disorder.
* Pain Management While on Naltrexone: Guidance for managing acute pain (both anticipated and unanticipated) and chronic pain in patients already on naltrexone for opioid use disorder.
* New! List of medication classes to assist in the management of opioid withdrawal symptoms.

CLINICAL TOOLS
* DSM-5 criteria for diagnosis of an opioid use disorder
* Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) to measure the severity of opioid withdrawal
* Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C) to identify risky drinking patterns

PATIENT HANDOUTS
* Buprenorphine Initiation Guide: A guide to give to patients who are starting buprenorphine in the home or community setting.

Note: This app is designed exclusively for the use of healthcare providers. This app is not intended for use to diagnose a disease or to cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent any condition or disease. It is the responsibility of the treating clinician to rely on their own experience and knowledge about their specific patient to determine dosages and the best treatment for that patient.