Through PPMC’s Center for Opioid Recovery and Engagement (CORE), Julie Dees, MA, LPC, director of Behavioral Health Services, and Nicole O’Donnell, a certified recovery specialist (CRS), have transformed the way Penn Medicine cares for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD).
Dees and O’Donnell have been instrumental in removing barriers to care, creating personalized recovery plans, and providing ongoing support to patients and families. And their efforts are working. In order to provide patients with comprehensive evidence-based care, those who are brought to the emergency room after an overdose are now given suboxone and connected with a CRS. CORE notes that these advances have led to 68 percent of patients continuing treatment after 30 days, and estimates that this work will prevent 187 overdoses each year.
This extraordinary work was recognized outside of the Penn community when Dees and O’Donnell were named “Influencers of Healthcare” by the Philadelphia Inquirer. Each nominee was profiled in a special edition of the Inquirer, and their contributions were celebrated at a celebratory luncheon this summer.
Dees was honored for “Excellence in Innovation.” In her two years at PPMC, she has already successfully applied for an expanded license that allows the hospital to provide medication assisted treatment; hired two CRS team members; and created a tobacco-free campus (including the new Wellness Garden) to support total recovery. Under her leadership and in partnership with Penn’s Center for Health Care Innovation, CORE developed a system to identify OUD patients using chart data to ensure patients are connected with the appropriate treatment quickly.
“Like the majority of Americans, my life has been personally impacted by the opioid epidemic. The stigma I’ve witnessed — stigma that prevents those suffering from seeking help — was and continues to be my call to action,” Dees said. “I look around during our weekly meetings and am filled with confidence that there isn’t a problem this team can’t solve. The work is far from over, but my optimism stems from knowing there is no shortage of passion or innovation on this team.”
O’Donnell, who was honored for “Excellence in Patient Care,” is on her own recovery journey and entered the field after losing her sister to an overdose in 2014. Because she has been in the shoes of the patients she works with, she’s able to connect with them on a different level. Whether she’s reversing an overdose with Narcan; linking patients to resources like outpatient counseling; or using her position to educate the Penn community and to combat the stigma, O’Donnell is committed to being part of the solution.
“I’ve been in that hospital bed, and I know the impact that medical professionals can have on a patient’s path. I’m on the other side now, and I want to be a part of that impact,” she said. “Our patients are receiving the compassion and care they deserve, and we’re seeing good outcomes and success stories. We know that it’s hard to ask for help, but we can prevent a mother from planning a funeral.”