In November 2014, Pennsylvania’s Act 139 went into effect. Designed to prevent overdose deaths, it focused primarily on increasing access to naloxone, a medication that reverses overdose caused by prescription opioid pain relievers and heroin. These policy changes have opened up certain possibilities, but that’s a far cry from making them happen.
To Be a Better Social Worker, Practice with Fake Clients
Standardized patients can help social workers talk about uncomfortable topics, including substance use.
Top Posts and Reflections from the Past 12 Months
IRETA Blog turns three today. Most three-year-olds celebrating their own birthdays don’t see it as an opportunity for reflection, but for us, that’s exactly what it is.
If It Can Happen in Austin, Indiana…
One is apt to think of an HIV epidemic in large cities or in under-developed areas around the world. In 2015, an HIV outbreak in the rural Midwest has lessons for us all.
People Who Care About SBIRT Converge in Pittsburgh
Last month’s event, Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment: An Interprofessional Conference was not massive, but it was certainly a major undertaking and a successful one.
Alcohol Exposure Affects Fetal Brain Development
Fetal alcohol exposure is a leading cause of intellectual disability in the United States. The cause of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs) is so straightforward and the entire problem so seemingly preventable that learning how many people are affected by the condition can be shocking, tragic, and certainly frustrating.
Teens and Twentysomethings are Getting Hep C Like Never Before
Earlier this month, the CDC released a report that should startle anyone who knows or works with people with substance use disorders.
Pennsylvania’s Medicaid Expansion Smooths the Road to Addiction Treatment, But Barriers Remain
Monday, April 27, 2015 was a day of celebration for many in Pennsylvania. It marked the beginning of Phase I of the state’s transition from Healthy PA to full Medicaid expansion.
Characteristics of Doctor Shoppers and Ways for Healthcare Providers to Respond
What’s a Doctor Shopper? The term “doctor shopping” refers to obtaining controlled substances from multiple health care practitioners, usually without the prescribers’ knowledge of the other prescriptions.
It’s a Pain to Research SBIRT
Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment has a lot of moving parts. That makes measurement tricky.
