|
Citation
|
Cloutier RM, Aldridge A, Hoffman G, Boyd KL, Wang EH, Foster K, Snyder K, Dowd W, Pringle JL. J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 2023; ePub(ePub): ePub. |
|
Copyright
|
(Copyright © 2023, Alcohol Research Documentation, Inc., Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey) |
|
Abstract
|
OBJECTIVE: The Pennsylvania Opioid Overdose Reduction Technical Assistance Center (ORTAC) was developed to provide community-level support across Pennsylvania to reduce the opioid-related overdose death (ODD) rate via coalition building/coordination and tailored technical assistance. This study evaluates the initial effects of ORTAC engagement on county-level opioid ODD reductions.
METHODS: Using quasi-experimental difference-in-difference models, we compared ODD per 100,000 population per quarter between 2016 and 2019 in the 29 ORTAC implementing counties against the 19 non-engaged counties while controlling for county-level time-varying confounders (e.g., naloxone administration by law enforcement).
RESULTS: Pre-ORTAC implementation, the average ODD/100,000 was 8.92 per 100,000 (SD = 3.62) in ORTAC counties and 5.62 per 100,000 (SD = 2.17) for the 19 comparison counties. Relative to the pre-study rate, there was an estimated 30% decrease in the ODD/100,000 within implementing counties after the first two quarters of ORTAC implementation. In the second year post-ORTAC implementation, the estimated difference between ORTAC and non-ORTAC counties reached a high of 3.80 fewer deaths per 100,000. Overall, analyses indicated that ORTAC's service was associated with avoiding 1,818 opioid ODD in the 29 implementing counties in the two years following implementation.
CONCLUSIONS: Findings reinforce the impact of coordinating communities around addressing the ODD crisis. Future policy efforts should provide a suite of overdose reduction strategies and intuitive data structures that can be tailored to individual communities' needs.
Language: en |