Describe the history and current state of the opioid crisis in the United States.

Description should include

  • the relationship between opioid prescribing and illicit opioid use to overall opioid overdose deaths
  • the prevalence of co-occurring mental health disorders
  • the shift in attitudes in the 1990s toward pain management and use of opioids, including the role of pharmaceutical marketing
  • the stigma associated with addiction and the changing view of addiction from a moral failing to a chronic, relapsing disease
  • statistics, trends, and demographics surrounding the crisis
  • population health and other public health aspects of the crisis, including its effects on family and neonates, as well as overall health costs.

Process/Skill Questions:

  • How are opioids created?
  • Can opioids be safely prescribed to patients taking psychotropic drugs?
  • How does society stereotype individuals with a history of drug addiction?
  • What are the current trends that have contributed to the nationwide opioid crisis?
  • How has the opioid epidemic affected emergency rooms and the first responder system?