Six Building Blocks - Self-Service How-To Guide

The new Self-Service How-To Guide is a step-by-step approach, designed to support clinics as they independently implement effective, guideline-driven care for their patients with chronic pain who are using opioid therapy. This guide builds on the Six Building Blocks opioid treatment toolkit, which is “a structured, systems-based approach to treating patients who use long-term opioid therapy.”

The Six Building Blocks and this How-To Guide serve as an evidence-based roadmap to guide opioid management processes by addressing six key areas:

1. Providing leadership support.
2. Revising and aligning clinic policies, patient agreements, and workflows.
3. Tracking and monitoring the population of patients using long-term opioid therapy.
4. Engaging in planned, patient-centered visits.
5. Identifying resources for complex patients.
6. Measuring success.

These tools help clinicians ensure the safe and appropriate use of opioids while effectively treating their patients’ pain. The University of Washington, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, and Abt Associates collaborated to create this guide.