Opiate Overdoses: A Case Study

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The prevalence of opiate abuse and opiate overdoses is staggering. In 2016, it was estimated that 12.5 million people in the United States were prescribed opiates and over half of all drug overdoses involved opiates (Naegle et al., 2017, p. 477). In the State of Connecticut, the statistics are worse. In 2015, Connecticut was ranked 12th for opiate deaths nationally, and in 2016 the number of opiate-associated deaths increased by 35% (Capital Area Substance Abuse Council [CASAC], 2017, p. 1). Locally, Bridgeport ranks fifth for overdoses related to opiates (Scinto, 2017). Ironically opiate abuse is not isolated to those in lower socioeconomic or ethnically diverse groups. Of the 685 opiate-related deaths in 2015, 80% were of white, non-Hispanic

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