The Ohio Society of Interventional Pain Physicians is taking up the opioid epidemic this weekend in Cincinnati at its first-ever meeting. Interventional pain is dealing with long term pain when pills aren't enough.
Conference coordinator Michelle Byers-Robson says Montgomery County Coroner Kent Harshbarger is scheduled to speak about what he's seeing in his morgue.
"What's actually showing up is whether or not the interventions that people are currently using, physicians are currently using, police are currently using, society is currently using -- is making any impact on what's actually showing up on his desk, and what we can do to work through actually treating patients and not having people die."
Byers-Robson says other topics include dealing with patients who may be addicted and determining when opioids are appropriate. She says she fears some patients may be under-treated because doctors are too afraid to prescribe opiates.
The group has about 75 members, but Byers-Robson says 250 to 300 people are expected to attend.
