Alleviating pain has been a primary focus of my career as a physician anesthesiologist. Just as there are physicians who specialize in treating conditions such as cancer, heart disease or allergies, there are specialists in treating pain. These physicians complete four years of medical school and further training in a specialty, such as anesthesiology, physical medicine, and rehabilitation, psychiatry or neurology, followed by an additional year of training to become an expert in chronic pain.

There is no better time to reflect on how we as physicians can better serve our patients — not only in the treatments we provide — but in how we tackle growing health issues such as the overuse and abuse of prescription opioid painkillers.

Opioids often are the go-to pain killer for everything from back aches and injuries to post-surgical pain, as evidenced by the more than 300 million prescriptions written each year. While they can be effective for moderate to severe short-term pain, opioids are not without risk.