Changing How Police Respond To Drug Overdoses Could Save Lives
Naloxone, The Opioid Drug Overdose Treatment Intropin via Wikimedia Commons This seems like a no-brainer: Teaching police officers how to administer drug overdose treatments could save lives. Law enforcement officers are often the first to arrive at the scene of an overdose, but according to a new study, they don't always know what they should -- or can -- do when responding. The study involved interviewing 13 police officers in Connecticut and Rhode Island about their attitudes toward prescription drug overdose, as well as current prescription drug users and supervisors like the chief of police (a total of 143 individuals). The interviews "highlighted officers’ feelings of futility and frustration with their current overdose response options, the lack of accessible local drug treatment, the cycle of addiction, and the pervasiveness of easily accessible prescription opioid medications [like Vicodin and Oxycontin]...