Article
Substance Abuse
Katarina Jones, Dana Bernson, Katherine T. Fillo, Amy L. Bettano
Summary: This study aims to create a new framework for emergency medical service (EMS) opioid-related incidents (ORIs) to accurately describe the opioid epidemic in Massachusetts. By categorizing the data, the study reveals new trend details and strains on the EMS system. Over half of the ORIs were acute overdose, followed by intoxication, other ORIs, withdrawal, and dead on arrival. The study also found differences in naloxone administration between the categories. Overall, the findings improve dataset linkage and interstate rate comparisons.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Chen Dun, Sean T. Allen, Carl Latkin, Amy Knowlton, Brian W. Weir
Summary: This study provides a detailed analysis of the demographic, temporal, and geographic epidemiology of suspected opioid overdose in Baltimore City. The incidence of naloxone administration increased dramatically over the study period, and there were significant proportional increases in incidence rates, consistent with fatal overdose rates. EMS encounters with naloxone administration play a central role in preventing fatal opioid-related overdoses and can be used to evaluate the impact of overdose prevention interventions and public health services.
ANNALS OF MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Gerard Carroll, Keisha T. Solomon, Jessica Heil, Brendan Saloner, Elizabeth A. Stuart, Esita Y. Patel, Noah Greifer, Matthew Salzman, Emily Murphy, Kaitlan Baston, Rachel Haroz
Summary: The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of utilizing emergency medical services units to administer high dose buprenorphine after an overdose. The results show that patients who received buprenorphine treatment had higher odds of engaging in opioid use disorder treatment within 30 days. However, the treatment did not reduce repeat overdose compared to the control group. Patients receiving buprenorphine also experienced a decrease in withdrawal symptoms.
ANNALS OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Substance Abuse
Scott G. Weiner, Olesya Baker, Dana Bernson, Jeremiah D. Schuur
Summary: This study aimed to determine the 1-year mortality of suspected opioid overdose patients who were treated with naloxone by EMS. The results showed that 8.3% of patients died within 3 days of treatment, 6.9% died between 4 days and 1 year, and 84.8% were still alive at 1 year.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Benjamin D. Hallowell, Laura C. Chambers, Jason Rhodes, Melissa Basta, Samara Viner-Brown, Leanne Lasher
Summary: This study developed and evaluated a case definition for suspected nonfatal opioid overdoses in EMS data, allowing accurate identification of opioid overdoses and exclusion of non-opioid overdose-related runs. The use of the case definition enabled analysis of key patterns and creation of hotspot maps to inform outbreak detection and response, highlighting the essential role of a comprehensive case definition in accurately identifying opioid overdose-related EMS runs.
PUBLIC HEALTH REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Molly K. McCann, Todd A. Jusko, Courtney M. C. Jones, Christopher L. Seplaki, Jeremy T. Cushman
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between bystanders and prehospital care measures for opioid overdose patients. The results showed that the presence of a proximal bystander was associated with dispatch codes indicative of an overdose and shorter times to naloxone administration compared to those with distal bystanders.
PREHOSPITAL EMERGENCY CARE
(2021)
Article
Pediatrics
Richa Lavingia, Ealing Mondragon, Nina McFarlane-Johansson, Rohit P. Shenoi
Summary: By implementing intervention measures based on 4 key drivers, the study successfully reduced opioid prescriptions for children with fractures and cutaneous abscesses, increased safe opioid storage and disposal discharge instructions, and enrolled all emergency department physicians in the prescription drug monitoring program.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Kailai Duan, Laura C. Chambers, Melissa Basta, Rachel P. Scagos, Carolina Roberts-Santana, Benjamin D. Hallowell
Summary: This study examined the relationship between decreased EMS utilization and increased accidental fatal drug overdoses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that although EMS utilization did not vary by time frame of death, half of the individuals who had a fatal drug overdose had used EMS services in the 2 years prior to death, suggesting that emergency care provides a potential opportunity to connect individuals to healthcare and social services.
PUBLIC HEALTH REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Elizabeth H. Barefoot, Julianne M. Cyr, Jane H. Brice, Michael W. Bachman, Jefferson G. Williams, Jose G. Cabanas, Kyle M. Herbert
Summary: The study found that nearly one-third of individuals who died from accidental opioid overdose utilized EMS in the year before their death, and nearly one-fifth had a drug-related encounter. This suggests that EMS encounters may present an opportunity to identify individuals at-risk of fatal opioid overdose.
PREHOSPITAL EMERGENCY CARE
(2021)
Review
Substance Abuse
Rosanna Smart, Rebecca L. Haffajee, Corey S. Davis
Summary: This study provides comprehensive data on the authority of different emergency medical services (EMS) licensure levels to administer naloxone in the United States. The results show that naloxone administration authority is widely granted to EMS providers, with most states allowing all licensed EMS provider levels to administer naloxone. Paramedics and AEMTs have the greatest authority in selecting the dosage and route of administration.
DRUG AND ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Francesca L. Beaudoin, Brendan P. Jacka, Yu Li, Elizabeth A. Samuels, Benjamin D. Hallowell, Alyssa M. Peachey, Roxxanne A. Newman, Mackenzie M. Daly, Kirsten J. Langdon, Brandon D. L. Marshall
Summary: This study found that a substantial proportion of participants in both groups engaged in substance use disorder (SUD) treatment within 30 days of the emergency department (ED) visit. An ED-based behavioral intervention is likely effective in promoting treatment engagement.
Letter
Psychiatry
Joseph Friedman, Leo Beletsky, David L. Schriger
Summary: This cohort study examines the emerging trends of overdose-related cardiac arrests in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic using a large national emergency medical services database.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Krysti P. Smith, Roy F. Oman, Minggen Lu, Ashley D. Dawkins, Robert W. Harding, Katherine Hepworth, Karla D. Wagner
Summary: The study aims to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of mobile recovery outreach teams in Nevada. Data will be collected using a variety of methods including quantitative and qualitative analysis. This innovative design aims to provide an effective public health response to the opioid epidemic by utilizing advanced statistical methods to assess the intervention's effectiveness.
Article
Emergency Medicine
Corey S. Davis, Derek H. Carr, Melody J. Glenn, Elizabeth A. Samuels
Summary: Buprenorphine treatment greatly reduces mortality among individuals with opioid use disorder, and EMS professionals can play a critical role in bridging the treatment gap to provide better care for those who experience opioid overdoses.
ANNALS OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Substance Abuse
Rachel S. Bergstein, Kelly King, G. J. Melendez-Torres, Amanda D. Latimore
Summary: The study highlights that many opioid overdose survivors refuse EMS transport to hospitals due to intolerable withdrawal symptoms, fear of inadequate care upon arrival at the hospital, and concerns about stigmatizing treatment by EMS and hospital providers. EMS providers suggested solutions such as titrating naloxone to alleviate withdrawal symptoms, implementing peer outreach or community paramedicine, and addressing provider burnout.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DRUG POLICY
(2021)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Shih-Chuan Chou, Justine M. Nagurney, Scott G. Weiner, Arthur S. Hong, J. Frank Wharam
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2019)
Article
Anesthesiology
Gillian Leichtling, Christi Hildebran, Kevin Novak, Lindsey Alley, Sheri Doyle, Cynthia Reilly, Scott G. Weiner
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Richard D. Urman, Diane L. Seger, Julie M. Fiskio, Bridget A. Neville, Elizabeth M. Harry, Scott G. Weiner, Belinda Lovelace, Randi Fain, Jessica Cirillo, Jeffrey L. Schnipper
Summary: Postoperative opioid administration in previously opioid-free patients can lead to potential opioid-related adverse drug events (ORADEs), with increased mortality, higher costs, prolonged length of stay, and reduced likelihood of discharge home. Older age, disease severity markers, longer surgeries, and concurrent benzodiazepine use are independent predictors of ORADEs.
JOURNAL OF PATIENT SAFETY
(2021)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Scott G. Weiner, Olesya Baker, Dana Bernson, Jeremiah D. Schuur
ANNALS OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2020)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Joshua W. Joseph, Kenneth D. Marshall, Betzalel E. Reich, Katherine L. Boyle, Kevin P. Hill, Scott G. Weiner, Arthur R. Derse
JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2020)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Adam C. Fields, Scott G. Weiner, Luisa J. Maldonado, Paul M. Cavallaro, Nelya Melnitchouk, Joel Goldberg, Matthias F. Stopfkuchen-Evans, Olesya Baker, Liliana G. Bordeianou, Ronald Bleday
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COLORECTAL DISEASE
(2020)
Article
Anesthesiology
Scott G. Weiner, Kimiyoshi Kobayashi, Joshua Reynolds, Kit Chan, Rodd Kelly, Sarah Wakeman, Prabashni Reddy, Leonard D. Young
Summary: The integration of PDMP into the EHR system significantly increased the number of searches but led to modest decreases in opioid prescriptions and the number of patients receiving a prescription. Single click EHR integration of PDMP may be a way for states to significantly increase PDMP utilization if implemented broadly.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Shih-Chuan Chou, Arthur S. Hong, Scott G. Weiner, J. Frank Wharam
Summary: This study found that switching from low-deductible health plans to high-deductible plans mandated by employers was associated with decreased ED visits and hospitalization for nonspecific chest pain, but did not significantly affect post-ED cardiac testing. However, enrollment in high-deductible plans was linked to an increase in 30-day acute myocardial infarction admissions after ED diagnosis of nonspecific chest pain, especially among members from higher-poverty neighborhoods.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Scott G. Weiner, Michelle A. Hendricks, Sanae El Ibrahimi, Grant A. Ritter, Sara E. Hallvik, Christi Hildebran, Roger D. Weiss, Edward W. Boyer, Diana P. Flores, Lewis S. Nelson, Peter W. Kreiner, Michael A. Fischer
Summary: This study examined the risks of chronic use and overdose associated with hydrocodone and oxycodone in opioid-naive patients following their initial prescription. The results showed that hydrocodone had a slightly higher risk of chronic use, while oxycodone, especially when used in monotherapy, posed a higher risk of overdose. This suggests that hydrocodone may be a preferable choice to reduce overdose-related deaths.
Editorial Material
Health Care Sciences & Services
Scott G. Weiner, Jason A. Hoppe
BMJ QUALITY & SAFETY
(2023)
Article
Substance Abuse
Amelia Burgess, Julie Craig, Emily N. Miller, Brian Clear, Scott G. Weiner
Summary: This study retrospectively identified and treated patients with primary poppy seed tea (PST) use disorder using buprenorphine. The results demonstrated that PST use disorder can be treated with buprenorphine, and the treatment outcomes are similar to those of other opioid use disorders.
JOURNAL OF ADDICTIVE DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Emergency Medicine
Scott G. Weiner, Jason A. Hoppe, Matthew D. Finkelman
WESTERN JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
(2019)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Matthew D. Finkelman, Robert N. Jamison, Britta Magnuson, Ronald J. Kulich, Stephen F. Butler, Niels Smits, Scott G. Weiner
JOURNAL OF APPLIED BIOBEHAVIORAL RESEARCH
(2019)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Scott G. Weiner, Christin N. Price, Ale J. Atalay, Elizabeth M. Harry, Erika A. Pabo, Rajesh Patel, Joji Suzuki, Shelly Anderson, Stanley W. Ashley, Allen Kachalia
JOINT COMMISSION JOURNAL ON QUALITY AND PATIENT SAFETY
(2019)
Article
Psychology, Applied
Matthew D. Finkelman, Robert N. Jamison, Ronald J. Kulich, Stephen F. Butler, Niels Smits, Scott G. Weiner
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT
(2020)