Substance Use Disorders
This section provides EMS professionals with resources and training focused on identifying, managing and responding to patients with substance use disorders (SUDs). Articles cover recognition of drug and alcohol use in the field, treatment best practices, harm reduction strategies, and the evolving role of EMS in the opioid crisis. Learn how to address provider safety, compassion fatigue and stigma, while improving patient outcomes through evidence-based care and community partnerships.
“As healthcare professionals, it is not the purview of EMS providers to judge our patients. It is our job to care for them”
Educating patients at the highest risk for suffering a fatal overdose
Insights, challenges and future directions: Highlighting the most compelling discussions that shaped EMS this year
Renovo Fire Department Chief Jimmy Ray Risley has been arrested
The objections may jeopardize the deal in which Purdue Pharma and the Sacklers will pay states and territories up to $6 billion to settle claims related to opioids
If a judge approves the deal, the Sackler family could be liable for up to $6 billion
Opioid settlement funding will continue for 11 to 18 years, and it is expected that more settlements will be forthcoming. Is your agency getting its share?
The new guidelines would give doctors wide discretion to weigh the benefits of pain relief and improved physical function against the known risks of opioids
State and local governments may put it toward public education, training treatment providers, detox facilities and needle exchanges
With the publication of the proposed changes, a public comment period begins, and experts have mixed responses
The department is evaluating the facilities and consulting with regulators about “appropriate guardrails”
The Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking emphasized the roles of law enforcement and expanded treatment in the future
The Benadryl challenge was trending on TikTok in 2020, and officials are worried the recent overdoses could mean the challenge is becoming popular again
Lexington’s team has added staffers and expanded to include rapid responses to overdose deaths
The Lexington firefighter was rendering aid to a slumped-over driver when the driver woke up, put the SUV in gear and took off
Joshua Cleland faced felony charges after Liberty Firefighter-Paramedic John Beard died of a fentanyl overdose
The paramedics were treated at Saint Barnabas Hospital for pain and swelling to the face and for a bite wound
The measure moves to the Senate; if it is signed into law, exposures that cause injuries could lead to felony charges
The SAMHSA program is intended to address mental and substance use disorders
College students Livia Cox and Nick Wells co-founded Middletown Harm Reduction Initiative, hoping to equip those addicted to opioids with lifesaving tools
Drs. Antevy, Piehl, Spiro, Scheppke, Bernstein and Kupas discuss ketamine and other sedatives, and how to minimize risk when administering
Teva Pharmaceuticals was the only manufacturing defendant left in the lawsuit after other parties settled
Lane Ambulance EMS providers were reportedly attempting to administer Narcan when the patient forced a paramedic to the rig floor
The company said it is cooperating with a Mississippi bureau of narcotics inquiry
Looking back into the data on EMS activations and trends, and looking forward in hope
The rig driver, Kevin Tirrel McCorvey, was arrested and told Fairburn police that he had smoked marijuana, taken Adderall and was drinking before the incident
Levi Coleman’s lawsuit claims that the Ogden Fire Department and the city violated the Utah Medical Cannabis Act
In this episode, our co-hosts discuss some of the top news from across the industry and offer their unique perspective on upcoming legislation, provider rights and more
In prehospital settings, naloxone is widely available, and buprenorphine has been approved for few EMS providers
“It is another tool in our bag,” said Richmond Fire Chief Sam Kirby
“We’re about 80 paramedics down,” said Austin EMS Association President Selena Xie, who hopes the change helps with staffing
Drug overdoses now surpass deaths from car crashes, guns, and flu and pneumonia
Kevin McCorvey faces charges of driving under the influence, second-degree vehicular homicide, open container and failure to maintain lane
MOST POPULAR
- How to identify and treat TCA toxicity
- Boston mayor sounds alarm over growing danger in city’s Meth Mile
- Locking the ambulance is an absolute duty for EMS providers
- Pa. EMT/FF off road after officials learn of DUI incident
- Justice Department considers reclassifying marijuana, recognizing medical uses