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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Eric G. Hulsey, MA, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, 207F Parran Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, 412-855-6276, egh7@pitt.edu

Opiate-related overdose deaths are directly shaped by a variety of barriers which prevent care. The literature indicates that fear of police involvement has been the greatest barrier preventing individuals from activating emergency medical services and calling 911 in the case of an overdose. The harm reduction approach acknowledges individual choice without minimizing the public health consequences associated with drug use. An alternative intervention to calling 911 was necessary to prevent overdose deaths in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The Overdose Prevention Project was launched by Prevention Point Pittsburgh in 2003 to provide overdose prevention training at its needle exchange site, the county jail, and at various treatment facilities in response to the large spike in overdose deaths witnessed in 2001. In July 2005, volunteer physicians began to work collaboratively with the program to write prescriptions to users for naloxone hydrochloride, an opiate antagonist, and then distribute it to those who have been trained appropriately. An evaluation of the project was designed to determine what impact the program is having on reducing the risk of fatal overdose among users who participate in the program, to determine what prevents individuals from participating in the program, and to explore the experiences of individuals trained and prescribed naloxone through the use of in-depth interviews and program records. I review the epidemiology of and contributing factors to fatal opiate-related overdose, describe the process of developing and implementing the Overdose Prevention Project, and describe the results of evaluation research aimed at demonstrating the effectiveness of the program.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe trends in opiate-related drug overdose deaths in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania and the potential role of naloxone in reducing fatal opiate-related overdose
• Identify barriers to care that prevent heroin users from seeking medical care for overdose.
• Discuss the development, implementation and evaluation of Prevention Point Pittsburgh's Overdose Prevention Project.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered