The indiscriminate over-prescribing of painkillers has resulted in a national epidemic of overdoses and opioid addiction. Prescription opioids can be used safely to treat pain when they’re taken the way a doctor tells you to take them, but they can be addictive and can cause an overdose or death.
Naloxone (sometimes called Narcan) is a medicine that can reverse an opioid overdose. In RI, you can get naloxone at your local pharmacy without a prescription from a doctor. Isabelle Boullier created a series of PSAs for her senior project. They address the stigma of addiction. Isabelle and Kathy Sulivan from the Kent County Prevention Coalition talk about the creation of the PSA and the stigma’s of addition and the services out there.
Isabelle’s project was a PSA challenging the stigma around addiction and recovery
• Estimated 1 in 4 Americans will experience a mental health problem or will misuse alcohol or other drugs in their lifetime.
• 314 Overdose deaths in RI in 2018
• Substance Use is the most highly stigmatized health condition in the US
• There are barriers to education, housing and employment
