Tag Archives: opioid

Journalists’ Topics Range From Rural Pharmacy Deserts to Opioid Overdoses

KHN senior Colorado correspondent Markian Hawryluk discussed how a rural Colorado town is crowdsourcing ways to get prescription medicines delivered on KUNC’s “Colorado Edition” on Monday. KHN Editor-in-Chief Elisabeth Rosenthal discussed how medical education changed during the pandemic on NPR’s “Here and Now” on Tuesday. KHN freelancer Amy Worden chatted about high vaccine hesitancy among… Read More »

How integration of SDOH data is helping improve opioid response, pop health

As hospitals and health systems have become more aware of the key value of social determinants of health, the questions have shifted somewhat. Now, many providers and public health agencies are focused on more nuts and bolts questions: related to data aggregation and integration into electronic health records and clinical workflows. At HIMSS20 in March,… Read More »

Viewpoints: Any Other Public Health Problem Would Be Researched. Why Not Guns?; Remove Restrictions On Prescribing Buprenorphine To Treat Opioid Addiction

Opinion writers weigh in on these public health issues and others. Bloomberg: More Gun Research Will Lead To Better Firearm Policies A congressional subcommittee held a hearing last week on the state of gun violence research in the U.S. The conclusion? It’s shamefully incomplete.As Andrew Morral of the Rand Corporation testified, “We know little about… Read More »

Overprescribing Is a Key Component of the Opioid Crisis — Here’s How to Stop It

By DAVE CHASE  Today’s opioid crisis is one of the most dire side effects driven by our dysfunctional U.S. healthcare system. A recent JAMA Surgery report found that many surgeons prescribe four times more opioids than their patients use. This opens the door for misuse and abuse later on. In fact, the total combined cost… Read More »

Smartphone App Detects Opioid Overdose

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a smartphone app that can detect if someone is experiencing an opioid overdose. The app uses sonar to monitor the breathing rate of a user, which it can do from up to three feet away, to assess if someone is experiencing an overdose. So far, the technology… Read More »

Massachusetts Maternal Mortality Rates Rising: Opioid Abuse and Psychiatric Illness Play a Role

Pregnancy-associated mortality, defined as the death of a woman during pregnancy or within one year of the termination of pregnancy, is increasing in Massachusetts.  In 2012, there were 30.4 deaths/100,000 live births. In 2014, the rate increased by 33%, to 40.4 deaths per 100,000 live births. Because pregnancy-associated mortality rates have historically been relatively low… Read More »

The patient-doctor relationship: Eroded by the opioid epidemic but essential to overcoming it

The opioid epidemic has swept through communities across the country, and according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse more than 115 people in the U.S. die every day after overdosing on opioids. This crisis is dominating the headlines as physicians, hospitals, community groups, elected officials, businesses and families try to tackle this massive problem.… Read More »