Personally-tailored opioid overdose education tool

With pilot funding from the UC College of Medicine and a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, CAR members developed and tested a personally-tailored opioid overdose prevention education intervention for individuals misusing opioids. Based on the positive results from the in-person administered version of the intervention, a self-administered on-line version was created and piloted. The results from that pilot were consistent with findings from the in-person version - the tool increases knowledge about:

1. Opioid overdose including risk factors, signs of overdose, and how to respond to an overdose; and
2. Medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD, which has been shown to reduce opioid overdose risk).

The tool, hosted on REDCap, has been offered by the CAR at no charge since October of 2020, a time when opioid overdose fatalities were increasing and COVID-19 made in-person interventions more difficult.

The learning tool was originally designed for individuals misusing opioids but we have created a version for anyone who wants to learn more about opioid overdose including factors that reduce the likelihood of overdose events and deaths. The amount of time needed to complete the learning tool will vary since it is based on an assessment of current knowledge. It is estimated that a majority of individuals will complete it in 30 minutes or less. The learning tool includes an option to have the material read aloud to lessen reading burden if desired.

It is recommended that individuals using this learning tool obtain naloxone, a medication that can reverse an opioid overdose and, thus, save lives. Please check local resources for where to obtain naloxone in your area.  Click here for versions of the tool.

Learning Tool Related Publications

Winhusen T, Theobald J, Lewis D, Wilder CM, Lyons MS. Development and initial testing of a tailored telephone intervention delivered by peers to prevent recurring opioid-overdoses (TTIP-PRO). Health education research. Apr 2016; 31(2):146-160. 

Winhusen T, Wilder C, Lyons MS, Theobald J, Kropp F, Lewis D. Evaluation of a personally-tailored opioid overdose prevention education and naloxone distribution intervention to promote harm reduction and treatment readiness in individuals actively using illicit opioids. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 2020 Nov 1; 216: 108265. Published online 2020 Aug 31. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108265