Understanding the Opioid Epidemic

PRESENTED BY: Wedgwood Meaningful Movies
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7:00 PM, Friday, October 12, 2018 PST
Location: Wedgwood, Seattle, WA (click for map)

This film traces the causes behind the unprecedented growth in the use of prescription opioids and the devastating impact these drugs are having in America. Β A single opioid prescription can be the forerunner of opioid addiction and even death. Estimates of death in the U.S. by opioid overdoses now range from ~100-140 users per day. Β Opioid addiction now extends into virtually every neighborhood, socioeconomic class, and age group in the country. The several-decade acceptance and use of opioid painkillers has led to, for example, health care providers in 2013 writing nearly a quarter of a billion opioid prescriptions, commonly for moderate to severe pain. Β Anyone who takes prescription opioids can become addicted to them. Yet even those who are not opioid users are ensnared in the crisis: e.g., families of the addicted, babies addicted at birth, and growing numbers of first-responders being trained in overdose medication delivery. Β Steps to stem the epidemic can include non-drug treatments for pain, improved opioid prescribing, and treatment of those already addicted. Our guest from Evergreen Treatment Services will respond to our questions on the epidemic’s many aspects.

Release Year: 2018

Running Time: 55 min

Director: John Grant

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