Building the capacity of drug & alcohol treatment providers to integrate overdose prevention into their work

With deaths from unintentional opioid overdose increasing nationally and statewide, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) prioritized increasing the overdose prevention capacity of people working in drug and alcohol treatment settings. SPHERE, a program of Health Imperatives, developed the Overdose Prevention Training Initiative (OPTI) to assist Massachusetts-funded alcohol and drug (AOD) treatment providers to incorporate overdose prevention strategies into their work with treatment participants utilizing skills-based trainings, practical technical assistance, and specialized tools. From July 2008- June 2012, 1,373 Massachusetts providers were trained in 74 skills-based trainings as part of this initiative. Participants received provider tools and practice opportunities on how to use them. Evaluations immediately following trainings demonstrated that training objectives were met with increases reported in participant knowledge, skills, comfort and confidence to incorporate overdose prevention in their work. Participants identified specific areas of improved capacity as a result of training participation. Follow-up assessment showed that the trainings supported participants to create overdose prevention opportunities in treatment programs and generated more overdose prevention activity. This presentation will highlight outcomes of SPHERE's trainings and share their successful strategies to develop and deliver capacity-building training on opioid overdose prevention for drug and alcohol treatment providers. A list of SPHERE's “top 10 tips” for training drug and alcohol treatment providers on overdose prevention will be offered. In reviewing this list, we will include not only desired outcomes, but specific steps to achieving each recommendation will also be described.