Health: Impact of Opioids Nationwide, the toll that Americans had to paid with their lives is in the hundreds of thousands. "Opioids, which include prescription drugs and illegal substances such as heroin and illicit fentanyl, have been linked to more than 470,000 deaths in the U.S. since 2000" (Salisbury Post, 2021) Link: https://www.salisburypost.com/2021/02/05/consulting-firm-to-pay-nearly-600-million-for-role-in-opioid-crisis/ Maryland specifically, the opioid crisis is one of the worst afflictions to happen to the state in terms of addictions and death by overdose. According to drugabuse.gov, Maryland leads in second place to highest death counts. To show just how much of a stranglehold the opioid epidemic has swept across the nation, and how much it has impacted Maryland, console the image below: Link for the image, as well as chart data, can be found here: https://www.drugabuse.gov/drug-topics/opioids/opioid-summaries-by-state To hit closer to my college of Salisbury University, Wicomico county has suffered one of the worst three year periods of opioid crisis in the entirety of Maryland. Between 2013, 2014 and 2015, the amount of deaths caused by homicides were less than that of the number of overdosing on opioids, the number of overdosing almost tripling between these years, and was only just under the amount of overdoses in Baltimore city which had an even greater number of deaths. Link for the source material can be located here: https://salisburyindependent.net/wicomico-news/changing-face-of-opiates-seen-in-wicomico/ Those who do survive overdosing suffer agonizing side effects, ranging from vomiting, nausea, hallucinations, impaired judgment, severe constipation, damage to veins, liver damage, insomnia, and much more. More can be found here: www.addictioncenter.com/opiates/symptoms-signs/ Impact on social determinantsOpioids are drugs that, through proper use, are meant to treat chronic pain that are otherwise most often unmanageable. Because of how easy it is to get addicted to opioids, this has directly caused a huge issue for those who are already in such pain, in such a condition to be in poor health, those who are vulnerable to addictive substances, and those possibly disabled or are unable to handle the correct quality/quantity of such drugs. Despite lawsuits taking place ( https://www.classaction.com/opioids/lawsuit/ ), the effects of aggressive marketing, ill research, and omitting key information from those who are desperate to alleviate their pains have now fallen victim to the addiction of opioid use. The most dangerous form of opioid use is when it's often mixed with unknown or more powerful substances, especially. As a result, those who are financially struggling to buy over-the-counter and have a preexisting health problem are a great risk to the dangers. The picture below is data collected from the official Governor's office of Maryland on the impact of the opioid crisis as of 2020: More information can be found here (This information was taken specifically from the 2nd Quarterly report of 2020):bha.health.maryland.gov/OVERDOSE_PREVENTION/Pages/Data-and-Reports.aspx Social Justice Issues in the immediate community According to the following article: (online.maryville.edu/online-masters-degrees/health-administration/understanding-the-opioid-epidemic-opioid-abuse-in-america), some of the most vulnerable populations that would be considered a larger threat to intersectionality justice and a threat to overall social justice are our youths and young adults, returning veterans, Native Americans, senior citizens, the LGBT community, and rural communities. A staggering claim was found that just about 74% of farmers are affected by the opioid crisis, which hits a lot more closer to home here in the eastern shore of Maryland. To give another look at the demographics of who is impacted, take a look at the following chart: Source provided by: bha.health.maryland.gov/Documents/Annual_2018_Drug_Intox_Report.pdf In 2017, Governor Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency due to the escalating issues of the crisis at hand. Shortly after, new and improved programs were available to the communities that were most vulnerable. These new declarations included, but not limited to, providing the necessary support to clinics and rehab centers, specially training first responders such as police with the knowledge to address these issues, and making naxolone, a drug that counters the effects of opioids, much more readily available, especially to said first responders by having it equipped. However, there still persists an alarming fact that the majority of these victims are male, with some evidence showing no real decline, and a plateau or increase in deaths among blacks. More can be found on Governor Hogan's Act here: bha.health.maryland.gov/OVERDOSE_PREVENTION/Pages/Index.aspx A call to action Opioids continue to plague all communities across America, but especially now in these uncertain times there's been evidence that it has grown due to the additional stress of COVID-19. ( Source of claim here: www.wicomicohealth.org/news-releases/addressing-the-opioid-epidemic-during-a-global-pandemic/ )
We must continue to remain vigilant when it comes to these issues. Unfortunately, the safety measures that Hogan enacted haven't yet shown a solid elimination or curving of these death rates due to the chance being squandered by COVID-19. I continue to advocate for what he started, but unfortunately some of the services have been relegated to phone operations such as council-ling, and that may not be enough for people, especially for those financially struggling to afford the necessary technology to use such services. There should be a call to action, to increase the opportunities for people to attend facilities such as detox and rehabs even during COVID, safely, so that they may get the help they need to overcome this terrible addiction. The health and/or drug board must also acknowledge these serious issues that plague 'all' the communities of Maryland, and have resources readily available to use at locations that many can access. Though this will be daunting, I know that the transportation system can also help alleviate those who need it. More funding may be required to accomplish a feat, which is no short order in the slightest considering the situation. I strongly advocate analyzing appropriate funds from all branches and programs that Maryland has, and make some accommodations and cut down on frivolous spending that helps neither Maryland or its great communities. To emulate this, please check out this site. More counties should adopt this, and additional sites that offer these services: www.freeopioidtreatment.com/li/wicomico_behavioral_health_21801 By accepting the challenges ahead, I can only hope that we can see an improvement. We must protect all Americans, no one should have to suffer a horrible health risk such as addiction to opioids. We must be cognizant however to the most vulnerable communities as well: We must intervene somehow to stop the escalating death toll among black Americans, men, our young and old, our veterans, the LGBT communities, and native Americans, and we must continue to work hard to protect those who otherwise cannot afford, or are vulnerable to being preyed upon, for the pains they didn't ask for.
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Author
Senior at Salisbury University, working towards a Bachelor's on Community and Professional Communication. |