By: HEAL Connections
The Opioid-Overdose Reduction Continuum of Care Approach (ORCCA): A Policymakers Guide to Implementing Evidence-Based Strategies that Address Opioid Overdose aims to help policymakers, communities and key stakeholders to develop comprehensive, multi-system strategies that address the opioid crisis. The science and evidence behind the framework was published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence and outlines 19 essential evidence-based interventions to reduce opioid overdose deaths.
The 19 evidence-based interventions recommended in ORCCA across five domains include:
Prioritize Individuals at heightened risk for opioid overdose death:
To prevent overdose deaths, a primary focus should be on reaching populations with the highest risk, especially those who do not currently engage in treatment or prevention services. Recommendations include:
●
Prioritize delivery of services to those who need
them most in criminal legal settings and other venues
●
Implement field-based population detection methods
●
Use data sources to target intervention to those who
need services
● Engage individuals with lived experience in decision-making process
Opioid-Overdose Prevention and Naloxone Distribution
(OEND) programs encompass training on recognizing and responding
to overdoses, administering naloxone, and providing rescue kits.
Recommendations include:
●
Implement active overdose education and naloxone
distribution (OEND) programs for people who use opioids and their social
networks
●
Implement active OEND at venues where overdoses are
more likely to occur
●
Include passive OEND strategies
● Build OEND capacity among first responders
Enhance Delivery of Medications to Treat Opioid Use Disorder:
Improved access to
evidence-based Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) significantly reduces
the risk of overdose death. These medications stabilize brain chemistry, reduce
opioid effects, and relieve cravings. Recommendations include:
●
Expand medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD)
capacity in healthcare, criminal legal settings, and through telemedicine
●
Initiate on-site MOUD in community-based settings
●
Create linkage programs and protocols
● Enhance MOUD engagement and retention
Remove Barriers to Critical Resources:
Improving outcomes and treatment
retention for individuals with OUD involves addressing the availability of
external resources that support recovery and enhance treatment retention.
Recommendations include:
●
Expand peer recovery support and peer services
●
Remove barriers to housing services
●
Expand transportation initiatives for patients with
opioid use disorder (OUD)
●
Address barriers to needed resources, including
insurance coverage, food security, childcare, and employment
● Remove barriers to supplemental behavioral health services
Safer Opioid Prescribing, Dispensing, and Disposal Practices:
These
strategies aim to reduce excess opioid supply, prevent access by vulnerable
individuals, and improve overall opioid prescribing safety. Recommendations
include:
●
Ensure safer opioid prescribing
● Implement safe and effective opioid disposal
The HEALing Communities Study, a multi-site research study, tested the impact of ORCCA, an integrated set of evidence-based practices across healthcare, behavioral health, justice, and other community-based settings. HEALing Communities is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) Initiative®. To download the ORCCA Guide for Policymakers, click here.
HEAL Connections
The HEAL Connections Center was created
by the NIH HEAL Initiative® to translate HEAL research into action. Learn more
here.
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