JCDH Recognizes International Overdose
Awareness Day
On August 31,
2022, the Jefferson County Department of Health (JCDH) will recognize
International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD)1 by honoring the 401
lives lost to overdose in Jefferson County in 2021 with a flag display at the
Guy M. Tate Building at 1400 6th Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35233. Each
purple flag will represent a life lost to overdose and a group of loved ones
forever changed. Our digital marquee will provide harm reduction messaging
throughout the day.
We are losing
our children, parents, siblings, significant others, friends, neighbors, and
co-workers to overdose. This crisis impacts every community in Jefferson
County: every gender, age, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Based on
the most recent provisional data released by the CDC, nearly 105,000 people
died from an overdose in the United States over 12 months (March 2021-March 2022)2.
In Jefferson County, overdose deaths increased 77% between 2019 and 2021 (236
in 2019 to 401 in 2021)3, and fentanyl-involved overdose deaths rose
233% from 2019 to 2021 (95 in 2019 to 316 in 2021).
To coincide
with the recognition of IOAD, JCDH is relaunching its online training site with
updated naloxone training and a newly added training on the use of fentanyl
test strips4. Our website offers free naloxone and free fentanyl
test strips to anyone in the State of Alabama in partnership with the Alabama
Department of Public Health and the Alabama Department of Mental Health.
Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can reverse an opioid overdose. It is
available as an easily administered nasal spray. The training takes less than
15 minutes. Individuals may access the training on the JCDH website at www.jcdh.org
and search for naloxone. Friends and family members of individuals with
substance use disorder should be educated on naloxone and have naloxone
available. If you have questions about receiving a free naloxone kit or
fentanyl test strips through JCDH, please email naloxonetraining@jcdh.org
or call 205-930-1065.
Help is
available for those struggling with substance use through a free 24/7 substance
use helpline at 1-844-307-1760. This is a statewide service sponsored by the
Alabama Department of Mental Health and staffed by peer recovery support
specialists from the Recovery Organization of Support Specialists (ROSS) to
help individuals navigate treatment and recovery systems. Individuals may also
call the Recovery Resource Center at 205-458-3377. The Connect Alabama app is
another effective way to find more information on substance use resources5.
“I am proud of
the amazing overdose prevention, and response work our team at JCDH has done
over the last several years, as well as the great work so many partners are
doing. Many lives have been saved, and many have found their way to recovery,
but the staggering number of lives lost is heartbreaking. We need more people –
those with addiction and those in a position to help them – to take advantage
of these resources.” – Dr. Mark Wilson
References:
1. International
Overdose Awareness Day: August 31 - International Overdose Awareness Day
(overdoseday.com)
2. Ahmad
FB, Cisewski JA, Rossen LM, Sutton P. Provisional drug overdose death counts.
National Center for Health Statistics. 2022.
Designed by LM
Rossen, A Lipphardt, FB Ahmad, JM Keralis, and Y Chong: National Center for
Health Statistics.
Products
- Vital Statistics Rapid Release - Provisional Drug Overdose Data (cdc.gov),
accessed on August 29, 2022.
3. Annual
Report (jccal.org)
4. Jefferson
County Department of Health (jcdh.org)
5. Connect
Alabama Behavioral Health Finder Launches – Alabama Department of Mental Health