Huntington's Transportation Case Study

Heroin and opioids have grown in appearance in communities. Since, 2008 in Allegheny County alone there was more than two thousand overdose deaths, with one hundred-seventy-seven deaths in this year alone (Pennsylvania). Furthermore, in 2015 there was only one -hundred-twenty-six;

Attention Getter: Imagine 60,000 people in one city, all dealing with the same problem, addiction. According to an article written by Carter M. Yang for ABC news on March 14th of this year, there are 60, 000 people in Baltimore alone that are addicted to illicit drugs. These numbers are disheartening and unfortunate. I can relate to every one of these people struggling with substance abuse, because I am an addict. A program called Narcotics Anonymous has

There have been several news coverages on TV and social network about drug overdose of different cases recently and they have risen people’s concern about the problems of drug abuse national-wide. The drug abuse and opioid epidemic is not a new problem to the American society, actually it has been a serious problem for many years. So what is the situation of drug epidemic now, and how can we find effective ways to deal with this problem? A few writers who ponder this question are Nora D. Volkow, Dan Nolan and Chris Amico.

Many people may not realize this but multiple states, including Michigan, are facing an epidemic. It is not a disease, however, it is a heroin epidemic. In a country where addictive opioid pain-killer prescriptions are handed out like candy, it not surprising heroin, also known as smack or thunder, has become a serious problem. The current heroin epidemic Michigan is facing, as are dozens of other states, has spiraled out of control in recent years. In Michigan, some of the areas hit hardest by this drug are in the southern portion of the state, like Wayne, Oakland, and Monroe Counties. The connection between painkillers and heroin may not be clear, but this is because both are classified as opioid drugs, and therefore cause many of the same positive and negative side effects. As a country, we are currently the largest consumer of opioids in the world; almost the entire world supply of hydrocodone (the opioid in Vicodin) and 81% of the world’s oxycodone (in Percocet and OxyContin) is used by the United States (Volkow). Along with consuming most of the world’s most common opioids, we have gone from 76 million of these prescriptions in 1991 to 207 million in 2013 – constantly increasing except for a small decrease starting in 2012 (Volkow). This widespread use has caused numerous consequences from increasing emergency room visits – for both painkillers and heroin – to sky-rocking overdose cases all over the country (Volkow). Michigan, unfortunately, currently has one of the

“...from that moment on I didn't take heroin because I wanted to, I took it because I needed to.” Heroin is a highly addictive, illegal drug that comes from the opium plant. In just the year 2014, 12,000 people in the United States died from heroin overdoses. The York County community has made a big effort to help fight the heroin epidemic, but despite these efforts the county is clearly still struggling with over 60 overdose deaths last year. Some of the efforts York County is making include the use of NARCAN, drug drop boxes, the Good Samaritan law and treatment courts.

As a result on this alarming phenomenon, deaths related to drug overdose saw a material spike upwards as recently as 2013. The number of deaths (13.2 for every 100,000 residents) earned the state the dubious honor of being ranked #19 in the nation for said deaths. In order to keep these numbers from getting worse, residents and their representatives need to start working together to develop prevention programs while making sure those who are suffering from an addiction have reasonable access to treatment and

The Heroin and Opioid Epidemic Northeast Ohio Community Action Plan is divided into four parts; Prevention and Education, Healthcare Policy, Law Enforcement and Treatment. This action plan was developed by many local hospitals including the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals as well with the Cleveland Division of Police, the Drug Enforcement Agency and many other health, law, and state agencies. This plan has immediate and long-term actions that will strengthen the community and bring the high rates of heroin related deaths down. This all starts with prevention and

Many people consider New Hanover County as a nice place to live. The website 10Best.com recently selected the waterfront in downtown Wilmington as the best American waterfront. However, all nice places have issues under the surface just like alligators living under the surface of the water in the Cape Fear River. The wicked problem facing New Hanover County is the opioid epidemic. Many communities across the United States share in this struggle. Over two million people become dependent on prescription pain pills and street opioids every year in the United States . Of those addicted, the deaths because of a heroin overdose have increased 533% between 2002 and 2016 in the United States. If the opioid crisis

The rate of substance abuse in New Hampshire is astoundingly high. In a survey conducted between 2009 and 2010 by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 12.15% of New Hampshire residents reported past-month use of illegal drugs. The national average during this time period was 8.82%, significantly lower than New Hampshire’s average. Likewise, the most common drugs of abuse during this time included other opiates, heroin and marijuana. More recently, data on drug rehab enrollments in New Hampshire during 2013 show heroin as the leading substance of abuse. As well, drug and alcohol rehab programs enrolled 1,520 individuals (36.7% of all treatment admissions) for heroin addiction treatment in 2013. The average

Proponents of harm reduction argue that instead of penalizing individuals for partaking in illicit drug use, it is more productive to create policies and procedures that reduce the likelihood of harmful consequences of such drug use (14). Naloxone, an opioid antagonist and overdose reversal medication, has been shown to be a highly effective harm reduction strategy. If used quickly, naloxone can prevent and overdose and reverse the effects of opioids (15). Previously only used by EMT’s and other medical professionals, allowing laypersons to access and use naloxone has successfully prevented opioid-related overdoses (13, 16-18). While naloxone is the most studied and validated harm reduction method, others have been employed nationally. Though not validated through peer-reviewed literature, Project Lazarus and the Harm Reduction Coalition, two harm-reduction centered non-profits, advocate that when using drugs, people should use together, and avoid mixing drugs as a means of reducing the likelihood of overdose (19-22). Many fatal-overdoses result from poly-substance drug use and therefore, the recommendation of avoiding poly-substance use bares significance even if this harm reduction strategy has not been analyses in a scientific context

A heroin overdose is generally a familiar, yet taboo, subject in today’s culture. It is familiar because one can witness the drug’s devastating effects like crime, imprisonment, and death within their community. It is taboo because it is culturally unacceptable and embarrassing to use an illegal product. Heroin overdoses have become a huge epidemic in Northwest Ohio, due in large part, to a misinformed culture, an influx of pain management programs, mixed drug toxicity, and a user’s desire to abuse laced heroin. With doctors, scientists, and researchers desperately searching for an answer to why heroin addiction is so prevalent, our community can find relief by being properly informed on

Opioids are making a resurgence in the black market, evident by the rapidly increasing opioid overdose rates in an increasing fatality count for Maryland every year. The state and local governments have been working to alleviate the issue with increased access to counteractive medications and required rehabilitation. This, however, is draining government funds only to stall, if not worsen, the problem. The best approach to stopping the opioid epidemic of Maryland is to take a similar approach to smoking in treating the situation as a matter of addiction instead of one of drug abuse.

Everyday, heroin is affecting the daily lives of citizens all across the United States. Just recently, in St. Louis County, a man was driving his car when he overdosed on heroin. After he became unconscious, his vehicle crashed into a family crossing the street, including a two year old in a stroller. The two year old was thrown eight to ten feet, the mother fell on her head and the father suffered a serious leg injury. All family members have since made a successful recovery. Since 2010, while the entire Midwest Region has not seen a spike in heroin related deaths, St. Louis County has. According to a St. Louis County Department of Public Health report, twenty four of the counties forty eight

Heroin use and addiction has historically been a problem in large cities within disadvantaged neighborhoods (Levengood, Lowinger, & Schooff, 1973). However, in recent years, many suburban, higher income communities have been affected by heroin and its victims are becoming much younger than the typical heroin addict. According to a qualitative study done on young heroin users in Baltimore, Maryland, the new generation of heroin users have a different demographic profile than older heroin users in that area. There are many factors that may have contributed to the heroin epidemic such as prescription opioid use that was replaced with a cheaper and more readily available drug, heroin. In this literature review, four scholarly, peer reviewed

Opioid and heroin overdose has increase significantly and continue to be a major public health issue nation-wide. With the continues growing of drug overdose, despite opioid harm reduction strategies