Citation

Johnson C, Buxton J, Harrison S, Ahamad K, Nolan S, Lappalainen L, Mead A, McLean M, Wood E. Can. J. Addict. 2016; 7(1): 22-25.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Opioid overdose is a major public health burden worldwide. While the development of community based opioid overdose prevention programs have expanded in recent years, the implementation of such programs for patients in a hospital setting is not well described. This case report describes the implementation of British Columbia's Provincial Take Home Naloxone Program to patients evaluated by the Addiction Medicine Consult Team at St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver, Canada between August 2014 and August 2015. During this period, 61 individuals were educated on the use of naloxone and were trained on how to administer it intramuscularly in the suspected case of an opioid overdose. In total, 23 naloxone kits were dispensed for future use in the community upon discharge. Overall, the Take Home Naloxone program has been recognized as a worthwhile initiative by patients, physicians of the addiction medicine consult team and other interdisciplinary hospital staff. Given the ongoing burden of disease attributable to opioid overdose and the feasibility of providing naloxone education and take-home kits to high-risk hospitalized patients with an opioid use disorder and their family and friends, these findings underscore the unique opportunity that exists for overdose prevention interventions in an acute care setting.

Copyright © 2016 Canadian Journal of Addiction is the property of Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine

Language: en