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.
A case study in opioid overdose complications, management strategies and provider safety
Jackson County EMS’s cardiac arrest and STEMI protocols demonstrate how leadership and front-line crews can come together to save lives
BLS and law enforcement naloxone administration improves already stretched EMS systems management of increased opioid overdoses
Heroin deaths rose 23 percent in one year, and deaths from synthetic opioids rose 73 percent
Students reported symptoms of fast heart rate, dizziness and dry mouth; 11 remain hospitalized
The rise of the extremely potent drug is a troubling new reality for a country already reeling from an opioid epidemic
Marek Svatos reportedly had a history of using heroin and had suicidal thoughts
Last month, state officials updated its policies to allow police, fire and other emergency personnel to carry doses of naloxone nasal spray up to 4 milligrams
Officials announced that the three accidentally overdosed on Ecstasy
The children were taken to a hospital and then into state custody
Our co-hosts are joined by Art Hsieh to discuss an article on carfentanil exposure
The creator hopes the video will raise awareness of the stark realities of overdoses, and will prompt people to seek help in battling their addiction
The state currently only allows paramedics and medical professionals — not EMTs, firefighters or police — to carry the drug.
Official: “It’s so potent that if we come in contact with it, we can get overdose symptoms.”
Unintended or casual exposure to carfentanil, a synthetic opioid 10,000 times more potent than morphine, can be life-threatening
Our co-hosts discuss key takeaways from the surgeon general’s report on opioid addiction
Police records show that Micah West’s actions forced EMS providers to pull the ambulance over and request police assistance
The high school principal was coaching son’s baseball game when an SUV crash through a chain-link fence and onto the field
Officials said the firefighter-paramedic felt high and experienced respiratory distress after entering a home with suspected fentanyl
The report details the toll addiction takes and explains how brain science offers hope for recovery
The opioid overdose epidemic is taking an emotional toll on EMS providers; here’s a roundup of innovations aimed at combating this issue
Joshua E. Hicks, 27, has already been convicted of reckless driving, theft and possession of prescription drugs without a prescription
Five residents were hospitalized and recovered, but at least two used heroin again hours after they were returned to the facility
While paramedics normally administer the drug, EMTs, firefighters and police officers are now able to do so
Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said some people were walking around like zombies and others were found lying in the streets
Police found numerous packets of heroin and drug paraphernalia in the man’s motel room
Here are six strategies to prevent drug diversion, part of the EMS profession’s important role in the fight against the opioid overdose epidemic
The caustic commentary of presidential politics is reflective of a deeper issue that impacts how we engage with our patients
Rocky Allen was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison for stealing a syringe with the powerful painkiller from an operating room
Emergency responders asked the woman to step aside as they revived the man, but she did not comply
School systems across the state have trained nurses to administer the drug should an overdose occur during or after school hours
Officers found the 32-year-old woman unresponsive and unconscious in a stopped car
A paramedic and an outreach worker from the Santa Fe Prevention Alliance go to the homes of overdose victims to provide the training and Narcan kits
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