The Indiana State
Department of Health is hosting a live webcast on the Overdose Response Pilot
Project, a program that assesses local health department (LHDs) and county
stakeholder capabilities and response readiness for a drug overdose event. An overview
of the project will be provided, as well as successes, challenges, takeaways,
and information about the new open grant cycle. This webcast will be
specifically tailored to LHDs in Indiana.
International Overdose Awareness Day on Aug. 31 is an annual global
event that aims to raise awareness of overdose and reduce the stigma of a
drug-related death. The event works to acknowledge the grief felt by families
and friends of those who have died or had a permanent injury as a result of
drug overdose. ISDH encourages organizations and agencies to host their own
Overdose Awareness event or attend one near you.
An issue brief released by IUPUI’s Center for Health Policy examines
fatalities by opioid type. The brief finds that until recently, prescription opioids
were responsible for the greatest number of overdose deaths, but now have been
surpassed by fatalities involving heroin and illicitly manufactured narcotics,
primarily fentanyl. A number of approaches are available to help prevent fatal
overdoses, including strengthening opioid prescribing guidelines and
encouraging providers to check prescription drug monitoring programs.
New findings from the National Poll on Healthy Aging show that nearly a
third of older adults have received a prescription for an opioid pain medicine
in the past two years, but many of them did not get enough counseling about the
risks that come with the drugs, how to reduce their use, when to switch to a
non-opioid option or what to do with leftover pills. The poll also shows that
the majority of older adults would support limits on prescribing opioid pills.
Scientists at Temple University are digging deeper into substance use
by researching how opioids reshape the brain and how genetic factors can impact
substance use disorders. By assessing the severity of an individual’s
addiction, researchers can study the genetic makeup of those with the highest
scores to discover DNA markers associated with severe addiction.
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