An Ounce of Prevention – What’s it Worth?  Preventing Diversion Through Regulatory Compliance

Effective controlled substance stewardship begins before medications even arrive at a healthcare facility.  State and federal regulatory guidelines provide a robust framework for controlled substance accountability throughout the lifespan of every controlled substance dose under a registrant’s control.  Although these requirements are often complex, ensuring regulatory compliance with these rules will not only help avoid costly administrative penalties but will also prevent and detect drug diversion in healthcare settings.

This presentation will discuss the creation of a comprehensive pharmacy compliance program at a large healthcare system with an existing drug diversion program and walk through the programming, tools, and audit methodology used for controlled substance regulatory compliance.  Examples will be highlighted in which this program identified potential drug diversion concerns outside of normal detection methods, as well as common pitfalls and errors with controlled substance documentation that could make diversion harder to detect.