8 MAY - 2023IN MY OPINIONImproving Hospital response to the current opioid CrisisBy Aliya Jones, MD, MBA, Executive Medical Director, Luminis HealthHospitals are not drug treatment centers; however, for many with behavioral health conditions, due to difficult-to-navigate systems of care, we are a front door to accessing needed services, as inefficient and as wasteful as that might be. Far too often, emergency departments become revolving doors for community members with substance use disorders, particularly those with opioid use disorders who are fortunate enough to survive an overdose. So what is an organization to do? In addition, how can hospitals most effectively respond to our current opioid epidemic equitably?I recently chaired the Racial Disparities in Overdose Task Force for the State of Maryland's Inter-Agency Heroin and Opioid Coordinating Council. The task force was comprised of state government representatives, non-profit organizations, and advocacy groups, including those advocating on behalf of hospitals. Our charge was to identify programs and policies to eliminate the growing disparity in opioid deaths among the Black community in the State of Maryland.I am fortunate to work in such a collaborative state and a state strategically focused on addressing increases in opioid deaths in all communities. Despite Aliya Jones
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