You are invited to attend the NDEWS Summit at the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) 86th Annual Scientific Meeting on Saturday, June 15th (06/15/2024) from 4:00-6:30 PM ET in meeting room Avenue Duluth. The Summit will be open to all CPDD meeting attendees. Please fill out our RSVP form here to inform us of your attendance.

We hope to see you there!

A recently published study evaluated changes in monthly buprenorphine dispensation associated with federal prescribing policies in Washington State from 2012 to 2022. Data were analyzed from the state’s Prescription Monitoring Program and showed a significant increase in monthly prescribing rates following the Comprehensive Addiction Recovery Act, especially among nurse practitioners and physician assistants. However, this trend saw a downturn after the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention That Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act and was further impacted during the pandemic. The authors noted that these insights highlight the need for ongoing adaptations in policy to effectively address the opioid crisis. Read the study here.

A study recently published in the International Journal of Drug Policy pooled medical examiner data from five US states and 14 counties to examine demographic, geographic, and drug-specific trends in polysubstance drug-related deaths. The results showed that female, American Indian and Alaska Native, and White individuals had the most elevated odds of polysubstance drug-related deaths. Drug-related deaths involving benzodiazepines or opioids, whether pharmaceutical or illicit and other pharmaceutical drugs were most likely to have polysubstance involvement. Read the study here.

A study recently published in the Journal of Substance Use and Addiction Treatment conducted a retrospective cohort study of the medication for opioid use disorder field initiation pilot program. In the program, a trained EMS Community Paramedicine team initiated buprenorphine in the field and linked patients to care. The program includes three pathways to treatment with the first designed for EMS to initiate buprenorphine after overdose reversal when the patient is in withdrawal from naloxone; a second pathway initiates buprenorphine after overdose when the patient is not in withdrawal; and a third enables self-referral via a connection to the community EMS team not necessarily related to a recent overdose. The results showed that a total of 118 patients initiated buprenorphine during the 12-month study period and 104 visited the clinic for their first appointment. Over two-thirds remained engaged in care after 30 days. Read the study here.

🔸 Endocrinology Advisor
Fentanyl Seizures in the United States Have Substantially Increased Since 2017

🔸Health Reporter
Rise in Fentanyl-Laced Pills Underscores Need For Drug Testing, Harm Reduction

This presentation will explore attempts to alter analytical and interpretive aspects of postmortem toxicology for expediency purposes.

Date: June 26th, 2024

Time: 2:00 p.m. ET

Register here.

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