Rethinking Opioid Stewardship With Pharmacists on the Frontline

Opioid deaths are down from pandemic-era highs, but persistent gaps in the pain management space have kept providers in the dark. Pharmacists, however, are the ones positioned to close these gaps through team-based support, medication expertise, and more.

On this week’s episode of Over the Counter, we were joined by Richard Dion, PharmD, pharmacy clinical program manager for clinical surveillance and compliance at Wolters Kluwer Health, for a conversation on opioid therapy management and the evolving role pharmacists play in opioid stewardship.

Dion opened by noting that although opioid overdose deaths have declined from pandemic-era peaks, rates remain far above pre-pandemic levels, underscoring the fact that pharmacist-led stewardship is as urgent as ever. He pointed to regulatory shifts away from rigid, checklist-style pain management standards toward a more patient-centered approach, giving health systems flexibility to build programs tailored to their populations.

A recurring theme was the gaps in provider attention, pharmacist involvement, and data. Without real-time access to key patient metrics, Dion explained, even well-intentioned clinicians struggle to make safe dosing decisions. He also emphasized that effective stewardship starts with leadership buy-in, standardized order sets, and multimodal pain strategies that pair opioids with nonopioid alternatives.

Looking ahead, Dion discussed emerging non-addictive therapies like suzetrigine, the growing role of AI-enabled analytics in flagging at-risk patients, and why pharmacists are uniquely positioned to bridge clinical expertise with data-driven decision-making.

For pharmacists looking to sharpen their role in opioid stewardship and understand where the field is headed, this episode offers practical insight grounded in real health-system experience. Listen to the full conversation for Dion's complete take on closing communication gaps, academic detailing, and the future of pain management.

Stay tuned for weekly podcast episodes of Over the Counter powered by Drug Topics. Check out our most recent episode with Jay Bregman, who discussed the newly introduced Medicare GLP-1 Bridge Program and what pharmacists can expect in the weight-loss therapy space.