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.
The falsehood of naloxone-induced aggression and assault
By leveraging naloxone and buprenorphine, along with behavioral therapies, medication-assisted treatment attacks opioid addiction from all sides
Download this free eBook to learn what steps your agency can take to fight the opioid abuse epidemic
A dispatcher advised the caller to keep the child’s airway clear until paramedics arrived
Police said Felicia Farruggia demanded her friend inject her with heroin and meth before responders arrived on scene
Jacob Polen said he’s responded to 12 overdose calls over the last year, three of which were fatal
The problem wasn’t being a paramedic, but how I was handling the job and the stress that came with it
Last year, 104 people died from prescription drug overdoses, up from 66 in 2015
The donation will help establish the Grayken Center for Addiction Medicine
EMS providers make home visits within one week of overdoses, provide assistance to addicts and their families and try to link them to services
Christopher Ayer was charged with drunken driving three times prior to last week’s incident
The legislation allows paramedics, with the consent of drivers, to draw blood at police stations instead of emergency rooms
Kansas is one of only three states that don’t allow first responders to carry and administer emergency treatments such as naloxone
Although officers and paramedics saved many lives by administering the anti-overdose drug naloxone in 2016, first responders alone can’t stem the tide
Four EMS providers were inside the ambulance at the time of the crash
Randy Lee Davidson was arrested for allegedly stealing doses of fentanyl and morphine and attempting to cover up the activity
Gino Ascani said he ran toward Neilson Rizzuto’s vehicle after he plowed into a crowd of 32 people
Reported incidents of drug losses or theft at federal hospitals jumped from 272 in 2009 to 2,926 in 2015
Given the increasing number of opioid-related deaths reported in the past months, an official said she was surprised more kits haven’t been distributed
Twenty-one people were hospitalized after the crash with five victims taken to the trauma center in guarded condition
Under the proposal, people experiencing overdose symptoms could get drugs administered faster
Community paramedics have an opportunity to change EMS response to overdose and addiction through application of harm reduction techniques
A state senator whose daughter died of a heroin overdose in a Burger King parking lot spearheaded a law that grants immunity to 911 callers
Although heroin killed fewer people in 2016, those deaths only decreased as more lives were lost to fentanyl
The program offers ways for health care professionals to intervene early before substance use leads to more serious problems
China is considering other substances for sanction, including U-47700, an alternative to banned fentanyls
Authorities said 21 emergency calls for alcohol-related illness were made over four days
Responders are starting to see calls from the same individuals multiple times for both overdoses and other health issues
In 2016, the state’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation tested 2,396 cases of fentanyl, up from 1,110 in 2015 and 34 in 2010
The video includes audio of a 911 call from a woman who finds her son unconscious and overdosing on heroin
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