Overview.
In 2017, Florida Governor Rick Scott declared the state’s opioid crisis a Public Health Emergency. PBCMS leadership saw the need to elevate awareness and formulate a coordinated plan to improve awareness and outcomes.
With leadership from the Healthcare Emergency Response Coalition (HERC), and oversight from a dedicated consultant, the newly formed PBCMS/HERC Opioid Task Force spent a year and a half coordinating its evidence-based approach to reducing opioid deaths in Palm Beach County.
Recognizing addiction as a mental illness, our approach centered on:
PREVENTION. Reducing supply and demand; implementing safer prescription protocols.
RESCUE. Using Naloxone as a standard of care.
TREATMENT. Introducing the “Every Door is the Right Door” philosophy.
RECOVERY. Expanding support for recovery initiatives.
