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Objective: To identify factors that influence or interfere with referrals by primary care providers (PCPs) to a pharmacist-led telephone-based program to assist patients undergoing opioid tapering. The Support Team Onsite Resource for Management of Pain (STORM) program provides individualized patient care and supports PCPs in managing opioid tapers., Design: Qualitative interviews were conducted with referring PCPs and STORM staff. Interview guides addressed concepts from the RE-AIM framework, focusing on issues affecting referral to the STORM program., Setting: An integrated healthcare system (HCS) in the Northwest United States., Subjects: Thirty-five interviews were conducted with 20 PCPs and 15 STORM staff., Methods: Constant comparative analysis was used to identify key themes from interviews. A codebook was developed based on interview data and a qualitative software program was used for coding, iterative review, and content analysis. Representative quotes illustrate identified themes., Results: Use of the STORM opioid tapering program was influenced by PCP, patient, and HCS considerations. Factors motivating use of STORM included lack of PCP time to support chronic pain patients requiring opioid tapering and the perception that STORM is a valued partner in patient care. Impediments to referral included PCP confidence in managing opioid tapering, patient resistance to tapering, forgetting about program availability, and PCP resistance to evolving guidelines regarding opioid tapering goals., Conclusions: PCPs recognized that STORM supported patient safety and reduced clinician burden. Utilization of the program could be improved through ongoing PCP education about the service and consistent co-location of STORM pharmacists within primary care clinics., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Introduction: Primary care practitioners (PCPs) are concerned about adverse effects and poor outcomes of opioid use but may find opioid tapering difficult because of a lack of pain management training or time constraints limiting patient counseling. In 2010, Kaiser Permanente Northwest implemented a pharmacistled opioid tapering program--Support Team Onsite Resource for Management of Pain (STORM)--to address high rates of opioid use, alleviate PCPs' workload demands, and improve patient outcomes. Objective: To describe the rationale, structure, and delivery of this unique pharmacist-led program, which partners with PCPs and provides individualized care to help patients reduce opioid use, and the Facilitating Lower Opioid Amounts through Tapering study, which examines the program's effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and implementation. Results: The STORM program includes a pain medicine physician, a social worker or nurse, and pharmacists who have received specialized clinical and communications training. The program has a 2-fold role: 1) to provide PCP education about pain management and opioid use and 2) to offer clinician and patient support with opioid tapering and pain management. After program training, PCPs are equipped to discuss the need for tapering with a patient and to refer to the program. Program pharmacists provide a range of services, including opioid taper plans, nonopioid pain management recommendations, and taper-support outreach to patients. Discussion: The STORM program provides individualized care to assist patients with opioid tapering while reducing the burden on PCPs. Conclusion: The STORM program may be a valuable addition to health care systems and settings seeking options to address their patients' opioid tapering needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]