Prescribing Essentials: Principles in Safe and Responsible Medication Use

At the conclusion of this course, participants will be able to:

1. Analyze federal and state-controlled-substance prescribing requirements, including PDMP use, documentation standards, and related compliance workflows.

2. Demonstrate evidence-based principles of pain management and appropriate prescribing to reduce patient risk while supporting effective symptom control.

3. Compare clinical strategies for acute pain management, including multimodal interventions, with palliative care approaches for patients with serious illness.

4. Implement validated screening and response protocols for patients exhibiting signs of substance misuse, opioid misuse, or substance use disorder.

5. Evaluate ethical, legal, and patient-centered clinical frameworks for prescribing and care coordination within the prescriber’s professional scope of practice.

This course reviews core U.S. prescriber education topics relevant to safe and compliant controlled-substance prescribing, evidence-based pain management, palliative care principles, and identification and response to substance use disorder. It is designed for licensed prescribers, including physicians, APRNs, and dentists, whose scope of practice includes prescribing or managing controlled substances.

Learners will connect federal requirements and common state-level prescribing expectations, such as PDMP checks where required, documentation standards, prescribing-limit policies, and risk-mitigation strategies, to practical clinical decision-making. The course emphasizes evidence-based, patient-centered prescribing workflows that support safer medication use, reduce preventable harm, and maintain appropriate symptom control across acute pain, chronic pain, substance-use-risk, and serious-illness contexts.

Because prescribing responsibilities vary by profession, jurisdiction, and practice setting, learners should apply the information within their own legal scope of practice, applicable board regulations, and institutional policies.

Terminology Note

Prescription drug monitoring programs are commonly referred to as PDMPs, though terminology varies by state and some jurisdictions use “PMP.” In this course, PDMP refers to the state-level controlled-substance prescription monitoring registry used to support safer prescribing and compliance workflows.

For this course, the term prescriber refers to licensed healthcare professionals, including physicians, APRNs, and dentists, whose legal scope of practice includes prescribing or managing controlled substances. Learners should apply all content within their own professional scope of practice, applicable board rules, institutional policies, and state or federal requirements.