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Combating the Opioid Crisis and Its National Security Threat Through CReDO: A Multidisciplinary Solution With Disaster Medicine Implications

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 September 2023

Christina Ann Woodward Open the ORCID record for Christina Ann Woodward [Opens in a new window] ,
Fadi Salah Issa ,
Duane Carl Caneva ,
Amalia Voskanyan ,
Raj Arvind Gadhia ,
Alexander Hart ,
Attila Julius Hertelendy Open the ORCID record for Attila Julius Hertelendy [Opens in a new window] ,
David Anthony DiGregorio ,
Robert Gregory Ciottone  and
Gregory Robert Ciottone
Christina Ann Woodward*
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
Fadi Salah Issa
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
Duane Carl Caneva
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
Amalia Voskanyan
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
Raj Arvind Gadhia
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital, Brockton, MA, USA
Alexander Hart
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT, USA University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA
Attila Julius Hertelendy
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, College of Business, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
David Anthony DiGregorio
Affiliation:
Hazardous Materials Emergency Response and Special Operations, Massachusetts Department of Fire Services, Stow, MA, USA
Robert Gregory Ciottone
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Northeastern University, Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Medical Program, Boston, MA, USA
Gregory Robert Ciottone
Affiliation:
Disaster Medicine Fellowship, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
*
Corresponding author: Christina Woodward; Email: cwoodwar@bidmc.harvard.edu
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Abstract

For the first time in history, the United States surpassed 100 000 overdose-related deaths in a 12-month period, driven by synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. Also, for the first time, potential chemical weapons are readily available on the streets and the dark web. Opioids represent a rare trifecta, used for licit pain management, as an illicit drug of abuse, and with potential use as a weapon of terror. Community-based Response to Drug Overdose (CReDO) is an initiative to unite agencies, disciplines, government, and private partners in 1 coordinated opioid emergencies response plan under nationwide standards, and can be integrated into the disaster medicine discipline due to the risk of mass casualty incidents involving fentanyl or its derivatives. Attention to the opioid crisis through CReDO will save lives by promoting information sharing between disciplines, shortened response time to overdose clusters, community collaboration to identify criminal distribution networks, and holistic approaches to addiction.

Keywords

counter-terrorism medicineCReDOdisaster medicineopioid crisispublic health
Type
Concepts in Disaster Medicine
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 17 , 2023 , e509
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health

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