Reducing Overdose Risk Among Patients After Rehab: Improving Patient Participation in Prevention Groups

Abstract

The United States is currently facing an epidemic of opioid overdoses. Roughly 841,000 people have died since 1999 from a drug overdose. Recovery Centers of America [RCA] in Danvers, Massachusetts is one of thousands of recovery centers throughout the United States. RCA’s mission is to help save 1 million lives from the disease of addiction using evidence-based practices and clinical expertise to deliver quality patient care tailored to individual patients’ needs. (RCA 2021). The purpose of this senior-level internship was to discover ways to engage patients participating in RCA’s overdose prevention group. To encourage engagement, patients were asked to compete a questionnaire that assessed what they wanted from the prevention group and implement it. Patients were also provided resources for Narcan administration training.