Chief among today’s highly effective available practices to halt and reverse the growing toll of accidental overdose fatalities is naloxone hydrochloride (also known as Narcan™), a low-cost medicine available generically that was first approved by the FDA in 1971. Naloxone is an opioid antagonist that blocks the brain cell receptors activated by prescription opioids such as oxycodone, as well as by illicit opiates such as heroin. It temporarily restores normal breathing within two to three minutes of administration.

Naloxone is the first line of treatment for emergency room physicians and paramedics upon encountering a patient experiencing an overdose. Ideally, emergency medical responders are summoned as soon as an overdose is detected. A dose of naloxone is then administered and rescue breathing is initiated if necessary. If the victim has not been revived after two minutes, another dose of naloxone is administered and so on until the naloxone has the desired effect. Naloxone’s effects last for 30 to 75 minutes, allowing time for the arrival of emergency medical assistance. Though the research is contradictory, some studies suggest that once the naloxone effect wears off, opioids in the circulatory system may become toxic again and without medical attention victims can subsequently cease breathing again. However, naloxone can be administered repeatedly without harm.

Click here to read the issue brief from the Drug Policy Alliance.

Abstract
Background: In 2009, a university adopted a policy of emergency department transport of students appearing intoxicated on campus. The objective was to describe the change in ED referrals after policy initiation and describe a group of students at risk for acute alcohol-related morbidity.
Methods: A retrospective cohort of university students during academic years 2007–2011 (September–June) transported to local ED’s was evaluated. Data were compared 2 years prior to initiation of the policy and 3 years after and included total number of ED transports and blood or breath alcohol level.
Results: 971 Students were transported to local ED’s. The mean number of yearly transports 2 years prior to policy initiation was 131 and 3 years after was 236 (56 % increase, p < 0.01). 92 % had a blood or breath alcohol level obtained. The mean alcohol level was 193 mg/dL. Twenty percent of students had alcohol levels greater than 250 mg/dL.
Conclusions: Adoption of a university alcohol policy was followed by a significant increase in ED transports of intoxicated students. College students identified as intoxicated frequently drank to toxicity.

Click here to view the full article from Addiction Science and Clinical Practice.

Published in August 2016 from the Center of Young Adult Health and Development (CYAHD), this report explains collegiate recovery programs, and provides information on the benefits and the impact of collegiate recovery programs on the college campus.

Click here to view the full report.

The United States is facing a prescription opioid epidemic. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported prescription and sales of opioid medication has quadrupled since 1999. Between the years of 1999 and 2014, 165,000 people have died from an overdose of opioid pain medication in the United States.

A majority of pain medication prescriptions written in the college health setting are for acute pain, though some students need pain management for more chronic issues. College health providers may not feel comfortable prescribing long term pain management, but smaller or more rural campuses may not have access to qualified pain management specialists; providers thus may feel both obligated and unprepared to prescribe.

The ACHA Task Force for Opioid Prescribing in College Health has created these guidelines to further an understanding of the issues surrounding opioid prescribing; review major concepts designed to maximize safety and reduce potential for abuse; and identify possible avenues to assist addicted students with rehabilitation, recovery, and return to the college environment. These guidelines are not intended to be comprehensive, and national issues and recommendations may change over time. Therefore, college health professionals are encouraged to seek additional resources and specific clinical advice as indicated.

Click here to view the full set of guidelines from the ACHA.

Abstract

Drug overdose deaths in the United States have more than doubled since 1999, reaching a total of 43,982 in 2013. Heroin and prescription opioids are major causes of drug overdose deaths. Naloxone is the standard medication used for reversal of the potentially fatal respiratory depression caused by opioid overdose. From 1996 through June 2014, a total of 644 local sites in 30 states and the District of Columbia reported providing naloxone kits to 152,283 laypersons and receiving reports of 26,463 drug overdose reversals using naloxone from 1996 through June 2014. Most laypersons who reported using the kits to reverse an overdose were persons who use drugs, and many of the reported reversals involved heroin overdoses. Medical clinics and pharmacies have started providing naloxone kits to laypersons, and the reported number of organizations providing kits almost doubled from January 2013 through June 2014. Organizations training and providing naloxone kits to laypersons can reach large numbers of potential overdose witnesses and result in many reported overdose reversals. Comprehensive prevention measures that include teaching laypersons how to respond to overdoses and administer naloxone prevent opioid-related drug overdose deaths. Additional methods are needed to provide naloxone kits to persons who might witness prescription opioid analgesic overdoses.

Click here to read the full article, published by the CDC in 2015.

This toolkit offers strategies to health care providers, communities, and local governments for developing practices and policies to help prevent opioid-related overdoses and deaths. Access reports for community members, prescribers, patients and families, and those recovering from opioid overdose.

Click here to view and/or download the full toolkit.

Published in January 2015 in the Journal of American College Health, below you can view a summary and a link to view the full article through your institution’s login:

To describe the adoption of public health and improvement methodologies to address college students’ high-risk drinking behaviors and to aid in prevention efforts.Members of 32 colleges and universities, content experts, and staff members of the National College Health Improvement Program (NCHIP). A 2-year learning collaborative developed by NCHIP trained individuals from 32 different college and universities in using the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle as a method to create and implement initiatives aimed at reducing students’ high-risk drinking behaviors and related harms. Participants experienced success ranging from noteworthy increases in type and amount of interventions directed at reducing high-risk drinking, to creating collaboratives across campus, the local community, and stakeholders. Challenges related to data collection and creating lasting cultural change remain. The use of quality improvement methodologies and creation of a national collaborative successfully effected meaningful change in high-risk drinking behaviors on college campuses.

Click here to access the article through your institution’s access to Taylor and Francis Online.

Published in May 2013 from the Center of Young Adult Health and Development (CYAHD), you can view the summary and a link to view the full report, below:

Summary

Excessive drinking and drug use remain significant problems on many college campuses. Contrary to the popular perception that substance use is a “normal” rite of passage endemic to the college experience, the more likely scenario—according to research evidence—is that it undermines students’ ability to succeed academically. Given the new research evidence, it behooves college leaders to recognize the connection between alcohol and drug use and academic retention, readiness and motivation to succeed, and view substance use prevention and intervention as a viable strategy to promote student success. More attention should be focused on identifying existing successful intervention models and designing innovative comprehensive approaches to promote student success.

Click here to view the full report.

This study was conducted by the University of Washington Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors in partnership with NASPA and the Coalition for the Prevention of ADHD Medication Misuse (CPAMM).  This slide deck and summary fact sheet detail the findings from the study which drew random samples of students from 7 campuses. The results highlight potential correlations between other risky behaviors and stimulant misuse as well as details groups of students who may be more likely than others to misuse stimulants.

Download slide deck.

This article found that many alcohol policies were difficult to find on campus websites and offers suggestions on how better to educate and inform college students regarding institutional policies. JED Campus also believes that policies should be easily accessed on the website and cross referenced from multiple campus offices.

Abstract:

Excessive and underage drinking by US college and university students continues to be a significant problem. Curtailing the misuse of alcohol on college campuses is an important goal of college and university administrators because of the many negative consequences resulting from alcohol misuse. As part of their prevention programs, U.S. colleges and universities are required by law to make information about their alcohol policies available to students. Often the source of this information is the school’s Web site. The authors evaluated the alcohol-policy information that is available on the Web sites of the 52 top national universities listed in the 2002 rankings of US News and World Report. In general, they found that the information was difficult to find, was located in many areas of the Web site, and did not provide complete information about the school’s alcohol policy.

Click here to access the full article.

This guide, produced by the Maryland Collaborative to Reduce College Drinking and Related Problems, synthesizes the existing research on interventions that are and are not effective. Research studies during recent decades have demonstrated the comparative effectiveness of different approaches to reduce college student drinking. Some approaches, such as simply providing information to students about the risks of alcohol consumption, are not effective in changing behavior. This Guide describes the two major categories of interventions that seem to have the most promise. First, providing intensive personalized feedback and monitoring drinking patterns over time can help an individual to recognize the existence of a problem and modify his/her behavior. Second, on a more macro-level, changes in the environment to reduce the availability of alcohol as well as youth access to it are clearly effective ways to decrease excessive alcohol use and associated problems.

This Guide includes a detailed description of various strategies, a summary of the research supporting or
refuting their effectiveness, and tips for implementation. By clearly and concisely summarizing the evidence
regarding which approaches have been found to be effective or promising, and which have not, college administrators and community stakeholders can have a better idea of how to allocate resources more effectively.

Click here to access the guide.