Problem: With an increasing rate of overdose among opioid users world-wide, anesthesia providers must be at the forefront of discovering strategies to help various patient populations with this issue. To minimize risk and improve outcomes Opioid Free Anesthesia (OFA) can be used in place of traditional anesthetics to help combat the devastating effects of opioids. Purpose: Among anesthesia providers within the PhyMed Healthcare Group, will the implementation of an evidence-based education presentation regarding OFA in the obese surgical population, increase the providers' confidence with OFA. Methods: The project design type appropriate for the chosen DNP scholarly project was quality
improvement with the aims to evaluate the anesthesia providers' baseline knowledge gained, and perceived knowledge following the educational presentation regarding opioid free anesthesia in the obese population and to evaluate providers' perceived barriers to utilizing opioid free anesthetic techniques in the clinical setting. Significance: A pre/post-questionnaire was completed by participants and a percent change analysis was conducted using the mean scores from these questionnaires as comparison to yield results. Following the educational intervention, providers' score on the post-test increased by
40%, and providers were able to accurately identify non-narcotic adjuncts and their appropriate dosages. The most common barriers identified were lack of familiarity with OFA drugs, pharmacy not on board, turnover pressure, and thoughts that opioids provide superior pain control. The team leader is confident that by being a life-long learner anesthesia providers can flatten the curve on the opioid epidemic by implementing new strategies for various patient populations.