Surgeon experience and opioid prescribing.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the effects of surgeon characteristics such as surgeon experience on differences in opioid prescribing after surgery.

METHODS: We evaluated a 20% national sample of Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years old who underwent 15 different types of surgery to identify surgeon characteristics associated with opioid prescription size filled within seven days of discharge using a multi-level linear model.

RESULTS: 174,141 patients and 13,828 surgeons met inclusion criteria. 53.8% of patients filled an opioid prescription within seven days postoperatively. The amount of opioids prescribed after surgery was highest for patients whose surgeons were early in practice (i.e. 0-7 years in practice). Surgeon credentials, type of surgery, and geographic region were associated with differing sizes of opioid fills postoperatively.

CONCLUSIONS: Surgeon characteristics such as cumulative years of practice contribute to differences in prescribing behavior after surgery. These findings can help develop strategic interventions to enhance opioid stewardship.