A Preliminary Assessment of Stigma in Law Enforcement Officers’ Responses to Opioid Overdoses

Kruis, Nathan E.; Merlo, Alida V.

doi:10.1177/0022042620974076

Cited by 12 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 66 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This included attempts to minimize role conflicts that might contribute to or perpetuate stigmatizing attitudes or beliefs or feelings of compassion fatigue among team members based on their professional affiliation (Carroll et al, 2020;Kruis & Merlo, 2021). Specifically, interviewees reported that the clinician took the lead when interacting with overdose survivors and family members and that the LEO and medic supported the interaction as needed and as directed.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implementation of a post-overdose quick response team in the rural Midwest: A team case study

Canada

Formica

2022

JCSWB

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The opioid-involved overdose crisis in the United States has had devastating effects on communities across the country. Post-overdose outreach teams have emerged as one way to reduce overdose risk for individuals who use drugs. Limited literature exists on how these teams are developed and how they operate. Even less is known about these teams in rural locations. This case study explored one rural team’s implementation, including its strengths and barriers to serving participants. Findings from interviews with program staff indicate the team had a consistent procedure for conducting outreach with overdose survivors and family members, had broad support and buy-in from leadership, and were able to clearly articulate the program’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities for growth—including the need for more formal program evaluation. Factors that facilitated implementation included use of a person-centred and non-coercive approach, establishment of team role boundaries, multi-disciplinary collaboration, empathy, and buy-in across agencies and town leadership. Barriers included stigma among citizens, lack of an evaluation plan, difficulty providing outreach to individuals who have unstable housing, and difficulty following up with service agencies. The findings can benefit other jurisdictions, especially small and rural localities seeking to address the drug crisis more effectively.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implementation of a post-overdose quick response team in the rural Midwest: A team case study

Canada

Formica

2022

JCSWB

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Prior research has found police discretion may be shaped by many factors including officer age, race, and rank (Beyer et al, 2002 ), police culture (Barberi & Taxman, 2019 ), suspect characteristics and demeanor, and the nature of the offense (Brown et al, 2009 ; Engel, et al, 2018 ; Novak & Engel, 2005 ). Studies have found that police believe people who use drugs will not hesitate to lie, lack willpower, are dangerous to be around, and cannot be trusted in situations such as child care (del Pozo et al, 2021 ; Kruis et al, 2020 ; Kruis & Merlo, 2020 ); in general they evince the stigma toward people who use drugs found in the general population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guiding officers to deflect citizens to treatment: an examination of police department policies in Illinois

Reichert¹,

Adams²,

Taylor

et al. 2023

Health Justice

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background The U.S. overdose crisis has motivated police departments to enact policies allowing officers to directly deflect individuals to substance use disorder treatment and other services shown to reduce recidivism and subsequent overdose risk, as well as refer people who voluntarily present at police facilities with a desire for treatment. As a new way of operating, and one that relies on an officer’s use of discretion for successful implementation, the practice benefits from guidance through written directives, training, and supervisory support. However, there is little information on the establishment, content, and execution of police department deflection policies, which hampers the implementation and dissemination of this promising practice. We analyzed 16 policies of Illinois police department deflection programs. Using content analysis methodology, we coded the policies for language and terminology, as well as program components and procedures. We aimed to examine how the policies were written, as well as the content intending to guide officers in their work. Results We found the policies and programs had notable differences in length, detail, terminology, and reading level. Only one policy mentioned the use of any type of addiction treatment medication, many used stigmatizing language (e.g., “abuse” and “addict”), and few mentioned “harm reduction” or training in the practice of deflection. Many policies restricted participation in deflection (i.e., no minors, outstanding warrants, current withdrawal symptoms), and critically, a majority of policies allowed police officers to exclude people from participation based on their own judgment. Conclusions We recommend police departments consider the readability of their policies and reduce barriers to deflection program participation to engage a larger pool of citizens in need of substance use disorder treatment. Since there is limited research on police policies generally, and the field of deflection is relatively new, this study offers insight into the content of different department policies and more specifically, how officers are directed to operate deflection programs.

show abstract

“… 49 None of the police officers in this sample had administered naloxone, so the perspectives of this stakeholder group may be shaped by their distinct role at overdose events. As police are increasingly asked to transition their focus toward providing linkages to treatment and promoting overdose awareness in response to the opioid crisis, 50 , 51 research examining best practices for training police officers on overdose response is critical. 34 Whether police officers’ and other emergency personnel's perspectives are related to their frequencies of overdose response is also worth additional exploration.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 34 Whether police officers’ and other emergency personnel's perspectives are related to their frequencies of overdose response is also worth additional exploration. 51 , 52 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…34 Whether police officers' and other emergency personnel's perspectives are related to their frequencies of overdose response is also worth additional exploration. 51,52 In summary, emergency personnel are faced with a crisis that has increased their encounters with individuals who use opioids. Although stigma is an enduring problem, some emergency personnel in this study had compassionate perspectives of people who use opioids and prioritized their professional responsibilities over any personal biases.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Compassion, stigma, and professionalism among emergency personnel responding to the opioid crisis: An exploratory study in New Hampshire, USA

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective Drug overdoses are the leading cause of death in the United States for those under 50 years of age, and New Hampshire has been disproportionately affected, resulting in increased encounters with the emergency response system. The ensuing impact on emergency personnel has received little attention. The present study aimed to explore the experiences and perspectives of emergency personnel responding to the opioid crisis in NH, with a focus on their views toward people who use opioids. Methods Thirty‐six emergency personnel (emergency department clinicians, n = 18; emergency medical service providers, n = 6; firefighters, n = 6; and police officers, n = 6) in 6 New Hampshire counties were interviewed about their experiences responding to overdoses and their perspectives on individuals who use opioids. Directed content analysis was used to identify themes in the transcribed, semistructured interviews. The results were reviewed for consensus. Results Several categories of themes were identified among emergency personnel's accounts of their overdose response experiences and perspectives, including varied degrees of compassion and stigma toward people who use opioids; associations between compassion or stigma and policy‐ and practice‐related themes, such as prehospital emergency care and the role of emergency departments (EDs); and primarily among personnel expressing compassion, a sense of professional responsibility that outweighed personal biases. Conclusions Despite the magnitude of the ongoing opioid crisis, some emergency personnel in New Hampshire have sustained or increased their compassion for people who use opioids. Others’ perspectives remain or have become increasingly stigmatizing. The associations of compassion and stigma with various policy‐ and practice‐related themes warrant further investigation.

show abstract

A Preliminary Assessment of Stigma in Law Enforcement Officers’ Responses to Opioid Overdoses

Cited by 12 publications

References 66 publications

Implementation of a post-overdose quick response team in the rural Midwest: A team case study

Implementation of a post-overdose quick response team in the rural Midwest: A team case study

Guiding officers to deflect citizens to treatment: an examination of police department policies in Illinois

Compassion, stigma, and professionalism among emergency personnel responding to the opioid crisis: An exploratory study in New Hampshire, USA

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About