Drug Overdose Prevention Program
Mission
To advance and evaluate comprehensive state-level interventions for preventing drug overuse, misuse, abuse, and overdose.
What we do
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Partner with the Governor’s Task Force on Overdose Prevention and Intervention to implement the statewide Strategic Action Plan, focused on Prevention, Treatment, Rescue, and Recovery strategies.
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Ensure community access to naloxone, especially to high-risk populations.
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Implement hospital discharge standards as a part of the Rhode Island Levels of Care for Emergency Departments and Hospitals for Treating Overdose and Opioid Use Disorder.
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Improve access to Rhode Island drug overdose data and treatment/recovery resources through PreventOverdoseRI.org.
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Convene a multi-disciplinary Drug Overdose Fatality Review Team to identify systematic and community-level gaps.
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Deploy peer recovery specialists who are dual-certified as community health workers to locations with increased overdose activity to connect people to basic needs, harm reduction services, and treatment and recovery support.
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Enhance the Rhode Island Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) to increase prescriber and pharmacist use.
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Educate prescribers on Rhode Island’s safe opioid prescribing regulations through customized one on one or group sessions. more
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Monitor drug overdose activity through enhanced data surveillance systems.
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Provide technical assistance and funding to communities to rapidly respond to the overdose crisis.
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Empower communities and individuals through statewide public awareness communications campaigns.
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Deliver technical assistance to national partners as an expert advisor and model state in responding to the overdose crisis.
Our Services
Rhode Island Department of Health