Since the late 1990s, there has been an increase in the number of deaths from opioid overdoses in the U.S., resulting in an epidemic. The opioid crisis is a major public health issue that premedical students should be familiar with.
Premeds may see patients who take opioids or overdose on opioids. Premeds can tackle the opioid epidemic in various ways, such as through public health interventions and research. This article will be a good primer into the opioid epidemic and how you can get involved as a premed student.
What Are Opioids and Why Can They Be Dangerous?
In general, opioids are a drug class used to reduce pain. Opioids target the opioid receptors in the brain, which block pain signals between the brain and body. As a result, users experience pain relief.
Doctors frequently prescribe opioids for post-surgical pain and severe pain due to trauma and disease. They can be given during hospitalizations or as outpatient prescriptions. Examples of prescribed opioids include codeine, oxycodone/OxyContin, hydrocodone/Vicodin, morphine, methadone and fentanyl.
There are also illegal, nonprescription opioids, which include heroin.
Lately, fentanyl use and fentanyl overdoses have made the headlines in the news. Fentanyl is a synthetically made opioid that is approved for treating severe pain, such as pain for advanced cancers.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. Given its extreme effectiveness in reducing pain, fentanyl is sold illegally through illicit drug channels and sometimes is mixed with other drugs like cocaine and heroin.
Higher doses of opioids can significantly slow a person’s breathing and heart rate, which can lead to death.
[Latest Data Show 22 U.S. Teens Die of Overdoses Each Week]
One cause for opioid overdose is that individuals develop tolerance over time while using opioid drugs. As a result, individuals use increasingly higher doses and/or increase the frequency of taking opioid medications to get the same pain relief satisfaction. This can lead to drug addiction or death from overdose.
Another reason individuals die from opioid use is that they combine opioids with other substances. For example, it’s extremely dangerous to combine opioids, which are depressants, with other depressants like alcohol, tricyclic antidepressants and benzodiazepines.
Fortunately, there is a medicine called naloxone that can rapidly reverse an opioid overdose. Naloxone also attaches to opioid receptors that block the effects of other opioids in someone’s body. Naloxone is extremely effective in quickly reversing the respiratory depression of an opioid overdose, saving somebody’s life.
What Is the Opioid Epidemic?
According to the CDC, the opioid epidemic started in 1999, after the increase of physician-prescribed opioids in the 1990s. In 2010, there was an increase of opioid deaths involving heroin. Then, in 2013, there was an increase in overdoses from fentanyl. In 2021, there were about 107,000 opioid-related drug overdose deaths in the U.S., which was more than six times the number of deaths in 1999.
How Premed Students Can Get Involved With The Opioid Epidemic
Common clinical experiences where premedical students may meet patients who take opioids are in primary care clinics and emergency rooms. However, premeds can get involved with other activities to help combat the opioid epidemic.
Work in Rehab Facilities and Drug Addiction Clinics
There are drug and alcohol addiction treatment centers and rehab centers throughout the U.S. where premeds can volunteer and get involved in a range of activities. These include distributing supplies, like clean needle syringes, food, clothing and educational pamphlets; assembling harm-reduction kits with sterile, single-use injections and inhalation supplies; connecting individuals to medical, legal, social or behavioral health services; assisting with overdose response trainings; and supporting and spending time with participants.
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Public Health Initiatives
Premedical students can be involved with health education campaigns to educate the public about harmful opioid use, opioid overdoses and naloxone. Premeds can also work with nonprofit organizations and local health departments to spearhead community-based interventions to combat the opioid epidemic.
Research
Premed students can get involved with a variety of research projects related to opioids, ranging from biochemistry bench research to public health and public policy strategy research to clinical trials for treating opioid use disorder.
The University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Medical School launched the Opioid Research Institute in 2023 to serve as a hub for innovation and opioid-related research. Premed students can find other research opportunities at other medical schools and community organizations that lead community-based opioid programs.
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Emergency Medical Technician
A common premed clinical extracurricular activity is to serve as an emergency medical technician. EMTs encounter many emergency calls for opioid overdoses. As an EMT, premeds will gain extensive training in recognizing the signs and symptoms of an opioid overdose in order to diagnose and administer life-saving interventions, including giving naloxone, to patients in the field.
Support People Facing Addiction And Homelessness
Julia Baran, a medical student at Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Pennsylvania, is passionate about helping individuals suffering from substance abuse.
After graduating from Barnard College in New York, Baran volunteered at a legal syringe exchange program in an opioid-afflicted neighborhood. During weekends, she served food and distributed clothes to people affected by substance abuse and homelessness.
Through getting to know individuals at the organization, Julia saw the interconnectedness of social determinants of health and addiction. For example, she witnessed how poverty and unaddressed behavioral conditions impede access to health care, leaving the most vulnerable alone in their struggles with addiction. In a cycle of self-destruction, each loss — whether job, home or friends — propels another loss and a deeper plunge into the abyss of substance abuse and depression.
As she interacted with many individuals who suffered from opioid addiction and who felt isolated and ashamed of their decline, Julia deepened her understanding of the indiscriminate power of addiction. She learned that patients not only need clinical care for their bodies, but also require compassion. A doctor’s office may be the only place where some individuals are treated with kindness.
Baran is inspired to be a doctor who advocates for underserved communities and provides compassionate support for individuals suffering from addiction.
“Decide in what ways you want to help,” she advises premed students interested in the opioid epidemic. “There are various opportunities to contribute and make a positive impact. Do you want to engage directly with the community, conduct opioid-related research or partner with stakeholders to advocate for equitable policies? If there is a harm-reduction program or homeless shelter nearby, explore ways you can get involved.”
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The Opioid Epidemic: What Premeds Should Know and How to Help originally appeared on usnews.com
