In-person education by staff or a drug counselor is interactive and can be combined with a referral to treatment. If in-person education is not feasible, video and handout materials are cheaper, portable, and uniform and can be referenced at home. However, they are less personal and less engaging and may miss an opportunity for referral to treatment. PrescribeToPrevent.org has educational materials tailored to different patient populations.¹⁷

Back to the Case

Before the patient is discharged, he and his family are counseled on the dangers of heroin use, how to recognize an overdose, and the proper technique for administering naloxone. They are given some written educational materials and a naloxone kit to use if the patient overdoses again.

Conclusion

Emergency physicians treat patients with addiction and opioid overdose every day. Increasing access to naloxone is one strategy ED providers can use to reduce deaths due to opioid overdose. For more information about how to set up a program and to access the full ACEP TIPS webinar report, go to www.acep.org/traumasection.

Dr. Samuels is in the department of emergency medicine at Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Dr. Hoppe is in the department of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver. Dr. Papp is in the department of emergency medicine at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Whiteside is in the department of emergency medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. Dr. Raja is in the department of emergency medicine at Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Bernstein is in the department of emergency medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School in Boston.

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