The following article is provided by Grant Baldwin (gfb3@cdc.gov), Director, Division of Overdose Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control, in promotion of their tandem International Overdose Awareness Day toolkit.
As you know, August is an important month in the overdose prevention community. Last week we recognized National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day, in remembrance of lives lost to illicitly manufactured fentanyl. My communication colleagues released a suite of materials and prevention messaging specific to fentanyl that you may find helpful. I find the four action-oriented messages to be clear and concise:
- Use fentanyl test strips
- Keep naloxone available on you and at home
- Never take pills that didn’t come from a pharmacy or weren’t prescribed to you
- Avoid mixing drugs
This week, in preparation for Saturday’s International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD), we released a secondary toolkit in support of this global campaign to end overdose. Please consider using these materials and the hashtag #EndOverdose on your social media platforms in support of this observance and the loved ones lost to overdose.
In tandem with IOAD, we released an MMWR today – Reported Non–Substance-Related Mental Health Disorders Among Persons Who Died of Drug Overdose — United States, 2022. This report found that nearly 22% of people who died from a drug overdose had a reported mental health disorder (MHD), highlighting the important link between overdose and mental health. The report also found that among people who died from overdose and had an MHD, antidepressants and benzodiazepines more often contributed to their fatal overdose. Tragically, one-quarter of people who died from an overdose and had an MHD had at least one potential chance for intervention within a month of their death. This is not the first CDC report whose findings indicate at least one chance for intervention immediately prior to an overdose death, emphasizing the continued importance of our mission to not only track trends, but to help people identify meaningful opportunities to save lives.
Speaking of data, the Drug Overdose Surveillance and Epidemiology (DOSE) dashboard is updated with new data from July 2023-May 2024 and data from five more states. This dashboard will be updated monthly as part of the OD2A-State NOFO, please continue to check back for the latest.
Our overdose and mental health MMWR couldn’t be timelier as we look ahead to September, which happens to be both National Recovery Month and Suicide Prevention Month. Please join the Injury Center in promoting messages that raise awareness of both of these complex mental health issues.
