New ‘Top Docs’ addresses DBHDD naloxone kit distribution program
The latest edition of the Medical Association of Georgia’s (MAG) ‘Top Docs’ show was sponsored by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) – and it addresses opioid misuse and the state’ ‘Naloxone Kit Distribution Program.’
It features DBHDD State Opioid Response Team Senior Coordinator Brian Le, M.P.H., discussing…
– The latest Georgia opioid misuse statistics
– How the pandemic has affected opioid misuse
– How his team has modified its efforts as a result of COVID-19
– How the state’s naloxone kit distribution program works
– Some of the naloxone kit distribution program’s success stories
– DBHDD’s community partners and how they can help prevent overdoses
– His advice for parents who want to discuss opioid misuse with their children
– What his team is doing to educate Georgians about opioid safety
– His suggestions to help physicians identify high-risk patients
“The Naloxone Kit Distribution Program is a training program that is available to first responders and public safety personnel in Georgia at their request,” Le explains. “Once that training is complete, our office supplies those first responders and public safety personnel with a naloxone kit, that includes two doses (sprays).”
Le manages several key opioid misuse initiatives – working in concert with an array of municipalities, counties, and state entities. He has been in the prevention and quality improvement arenas for more than 13 years, including stints with the American Cancer Society (focusing on tobacco prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa) and Grady Hospital’s Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center. He has a degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and a master’s degree in health policy and management from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.
MAG and the MAG Foundation have been leaders in the effort to reduce prescription drug misuse in Georgia for more than a decade. One of the MAG Foundation’s marquee programs is the ‘Think About It’ initiative to reduce prescription drug misuse. DBHDD has been one of the MAG Foundation’s strongest allies in this effort. Click here or contact Lori Murphy at lmurphy@mag.org or 678.303.9282 for details or to support the ‘Think About It’ initiative with a donation.
Resources
Georgia Crisis & Access Line: 800.715.4225
Staffed by professionals 24/7/365 who will provide telephonic crisis intervention services, dispatch mobile crisis teams, assist individuals find an open crisis or detox bed, and help individuals find urgent and non-emergency state-funded services.
The views of the guests who appear on ‘Top Docs’ are theirs and aren’t necessarily consistent with MAG’s policies or positions. Contact Tom Kornegay at tkornegay@mag.org with questions about MAG’s ‘Top Docs’ show.
