Purpose

The purpose of this assignment is to provide the student with an opportunity to explore the most recent guidelines and recommendations in the student's state of practice for pain management therapies and education; as well as to understand specific state regulations governing controlled substance prescriptions.

Through this assignment, the student will demonstrate the ability to:

• Identify and describe at least one current state specific guideline (Texas) for pain management therapy and education.
• Explore other organizations or pain initiatives that are offered by the state (if applicable).
• Describe state specific laws that apply to the authority to prescribe schedule II controlled substances.
• Explore the state's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). 

Students are expected to submit assignments by the time they are due. Assignments submitted after the due date and time will receive a deduction of 10% of the total points possible for that assignment for each day the assignment is late. Assignments will ..., with penalty as described, up to a maximum of three days late, after which point a zero will ... recorded for the assignment.

In the event of a situation that prevents timely submission of an assignment, students may petition their instructor for a waiver of the late submission grade reduction. The instructor will review the student's rationale for the request and make a determination based on the merits of the student's appeal. Consideration of the student's total course performance to date will be a contributing factor in the determination. Students should continue to attend class, actively participate, and complete other assignments while the appeal is pending.

Preparing the Paper:

1. The "State Specific Guidelines for Prescribing Controlled Substances" paper is worth 50 points and will graded on the quality of the content, use of citations, use of Standard English grammar, sentence structure, and overall organization based on the required components as summarized in the directions and grading criteria/rubric.
2. Submit the paper as a Microsoft Word Document, which is the format at Chamberlain University. You are encouraged to use the APA Academic Writer when creating your assignment.
3. Follow the directions below and the grading criteria located in the rubric closely. Any questions about this paper may be posted under the Q & A Forum or emailed to your faculty.
4. The length of the paper should be 2-4 pages, excluding title page and reference page(s). The title and reference pages should be in APA format.
5. Sources should directly from the state's regulatory organization(s) and must cited appropriately.
6. It is recommended that you keep a copy of this paper to provide to potential employers or your Board of Nursing in order to demonstrate your knowledge of your state laws.