EMS World Expo 2018

Join a panel of distinguished experts in opioid crisis management, moderated by Michael Dailey.

As a seasoned employee of a large healthcare company and father of a son who died of an overdose, I have made it my mission to help first responders, families, and the public understand the stigma of addiction so we can prevent more opioid overdoses. This presentation is designed specifically for law enforcement, EMTs, and paramedics to help them understand the disease of addiction and better deal with addicts and families. Often these folks can be game-changers when it comes to connecting with an addict.
-R. Brandt

The opioid crisis in North America began on the West Coast, particularly Greater Vancouver in British Columbia, population 2.5 million. Starting in October 2016, BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) noticed a significant rise in opioid overdoses (ODs), and more vials of naloxone were required to reverse the ODs. At its peak, BCEHS was responding to 160 OD calls per day. The majority of these originated in an 8-by-10-block area known as the Downtown East Side. In this session, we will draw on the experience of BCEHS to demonstrate how to deal with an increased demand on the EMS system, recognizing the “new normal," working with other allied health agencies to support each other, exploring "outside the box" ideas, and ensuring resilience among our EMTs.
-N. Ip

EMS organizations around the country are increasingly acknowledging the best-kept secret in the industry. The types of calls the system was built to address--acute medical emergencies and critical traumas--are increasingly rare. More frequently, our calls are occurring at the intersection of medical illness, mental health and substance use issues, and social problems. The concept of EMS 3.0 guides systems to address this evolving fact. For most of the past 25 years, New Mexico has led the nation in opioid overdose death rates. The epicenter of the overdose epidemic is just north of the City of Santa Fe in Rio Arriba County, where the age-adjusted death rate for 2016 was 84.8 per 100,000--the highest in the country. In October 2016, the SFFD MIHO embarked on a collaboration with the Santa Fe Prevention Alliance to conduct opioid overdose survivor outreach, follow-up, and naloxone distribution to overdose survivors and their families or friends. This presentation will cover all aspects of the project, its potential impact on overdose prevention, overdose morbidity and mortality, and overall public health in the context of providing community paramedicine interventions.
A. Mercado