Addressing the Crisis of Fentanyl Overdose

In October of 2022, a well-attended Fentanyl Summit was held in Bernalillo County to discuss the fentanyl crisis in New Mexico. The slogan of the summit – Keep New Mexico Alive – aptly summed up the problem with fentanyl. Since coming on the drug scene in 2014, it’s now the primary drug responsible for overdose death not only in New Mexico, but nationwide. Despite significant efforts to curb this challenging public health crisis, fentanyl remains a significant threat to our communities. Join us for our first webinar of the year where we’ll discuss fentanyl within the context of the New Mexico 5-Actions Program™. How is being hooked on fentanyl the same and different from other substances and behaviors? What are the critical underlying drivers that lead people to use fentanyl, and how can we address them? What can parents do to protect their children? And what should you do if you are presently abusing fentanyl?

• Why fentanyl is such a significant public health threat
• How fentanyl is a symptom of a broader constellation of life challenges
• Steps can you take if fentanyl is a problem for yourself or a loved one
• Why all community stakeholders are needed to address this crisis

About the Presenter

Lydia Bartholow is a doctorally prepared psychiatric nurse practitioner with a specialty in addiction medicine and trauma informed care. She is a medical director at a large FQHC that focuses on co-occurring disorders and is on faculty at UCSF where she teaches in the psychiatric nurse practitioner program. She speaks nationally on topics such as co-occurring disorders, harm reduction, and substance use disorder care system improvement. She focuses all parts of her practice on radical public health, harm reduction and anti-oppression work. Lydia lives in Portland, Oregon, on Chinook, Kathlamet, Clackamas and Kalapuya land.