The opioid crisis in the United States has long been a major national health-related problem. Dayton, Ohio, is a valuable city for analyzing the opioid epidemic and possible mitigation strategies. Montgomery County is the region with the highest number of unintentional opioid overdoses. The reasons for this situation are socio-economic factors and the availability of inexpensive drugs. Similar conditions are observed in Anytown, which makes the research conducted in Dion relevant to the application.
Dayton is the epicenter of the U.S. opioid epidemic, with the highest death rates. Opioid overdose deaths in Montgomery County, including Dayton, increased from 21.9 to 57.7 between 2010 and 2016 (Bowman, 2018, p. 421). However, strategies to improve this situation resulted in an almost 50% drop in the number of deaths from 2017 to 2018 (Wedell, 2019). One of the leading causes of the opioid epidemic in Dayton is the general socio-economic situation in the city and the surrounding area.
As with any other disease, specific populations are vulnerable to overdose and associated mortality. First of all, the problem most affects white men between the ages of 30-39, as well as black men between the ages of 35-44 (Hernandez et al., 2020, p. 4).
Significantly, research has established a correlation between race, gender, age, and economic status with opioid use disorder (OUD) (Hernandez et al., 2020). Moreover, death caused by opioid use is often a consequence of a “previous history of substance abuse, which often starts between the ages of 18 to 25 years” (Hernandez et al., 2020, p. 4). Thus, the presence of drug-addicted adults in a family is often a determinant of a child’s future drug addiction. Some adults also become opioid-dependent after taking prescripted opioid medications. Daytona is particularly characterized by significant disparity associated with the race and gender of the dependent people. This may be due to both regional and national history of opioid addiction among the population.
The opioid crisis has greatly affected the lives of many people in Dayton. As a result of the epidemic, Dayton has long been the city with the highest rates of unintentional opioid overdose. There are several reasons for this situation, which are related to socio-economic conditions. Primarily, the industry in Daytona requires residents to work hard, “leaving many working-age and retired residents with chronic pain or unable to work” (Welch, 2019).
Thus, prescribing opioid drugs has long been a common practice, often resulting in addiction. Moreover, the local illicit drug market has recently experienced growth, leading to the proliferation of “non-pharmaceutical fentanyl and fentanyl analogue-type drugs” (Daniulaityte, 2020, p. 2). Thus, a vast number of opioid addicts, combined with the availability of inexpensive drugs, has led to a sharp increase in overdose in Dayton.
Since Dayton is the epicenter of the opioid epidemic in the United States, many researchers are analyzing the situation to improve it. Hernandez et al. (2020) consider the crisis in the scope of the prescribed opioid medications. The main finding of this study was the identification of the geographical epicenters of the Ohio epidemic and the relevance of mitigation strategies to target specific populations and regions. The research was based on statistics from the Ohio Department of Health showing the number and causes of opioid overdose deaths from 2010 to 2017.
In most cases, researchers use statistical data to analyze according to various criteria. The work by Daniulaityte et al. (2020) focuses on identifying the causes and behavior of opioid addicts in the Midwest of the United States. Although the study was not exclusively conducted in Daytona, the authors place great emphasis on this city, as it is the center of the crisis. The results of this research found that addiction is most often associated with low economic status as well as a history of pain treatment.
While researchers are more likely to assess the causes of the opioid crisis, some are developing mitigation strategies for health care workers. Research by Bowman (2018) focuses on how physicians should behave when interacting with opioid addicts, in particular when treating them. This study also uses statistics to determine the causes of the crisis. However, more emphasis is placed on identifying aspects that are important when dealing with opioid-dependent patients.
Thus, the main type of study is quantitative research based on the analysis of statistical data. The design of the available papers involves reviewing existing data using various criteria and describing trends associated with the epidemic. The result of the research is a theoretical study of possible strategies for mitigating the problem based on the identified factors. The strength of such works is a fairly accurate description of the demographic composition of addicted people, as well as a description of the determinants. However, research weaknesses include an insufficient focus on analyzing the results of applied strategies, as well as the role of mitigation tools in the observed dynamics.
Anytown and Dayton have similar causes and determinants of the opioid crisis, which makes the city’s experience valuable to apply. Thus, in relation to Anytown, the measures taken in Dayton can also be effective. In addition, the city’s current overdose death rates have dropped significantly due to the strategies implemented, making the experience a positive one. Dayton can provide Anytown guidance as Dayton has “made important strides in tackling the opioid epidemic in the region” (). Moreover, mitigation strategies have allowed many people to return to normal life. Dayton’s experience also provides valuable insight into the causes of the crisis that is relevant to Anytown. Thus, the response to the crisis has been highly effective in Montgomery County and Dayton, so its experience can be applied to other regions.
References
Bowman, M. (2018). Opioid abuse and death: Thoughts from Dayton, Ohio. Family Medicine, 50(6), 420-422. Web.
Daniulaityte, R., Silverstein, S. M., Crawford, T. N., Martins, S. S., Zule, W., Zaragoza, A. J., & Carlson, R. G. (2020). Methamphetamine use and its correlates among individuals with opioid use disorder in a midwestern U.S. city. Substance Use & Misuse, 55(11), 1781-189. Web.
Hernandez, A., Branscum, A. J., Li, J., MacKinnon, N. J., Hincapie, A. L., & Cuadros, D. F. (2020). Epidemiological and geospatial profile of the prescription opioid crisis in Ohio, United States. Scientific Reports, 10, 1-10. Web.
Welch, E. (2019). A community of recovery: Dayton, Ohio’s compassionate, collective approach to the opioid crisis. Center for American Progress. Web.