UNODC-WHO Stop-Overdose-Safely (S-O-S) project implementation in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Ukraine

Download or read book UNODC-WHO Stop-Overdose-Safely (S-O-S) project implementation in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Ukraine written by and published by World Health Organization. This book was released on 2021-04-01 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report details the main findings of the implementation of the WHO-UNODC Stop-Overdose-Safely (S-O-S) project in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Ukraine. It provides an overview of the extent of the overdose problem and the development of responses, followed by a description of the methods used in implementation, monitoring and evaluation as measured through a prospective cohort study, focus groups, and qualitative interviews conducted in the four project countries. The S-O-S project resulted in the rapid distribution of take-home naloxone to 14,263 potential opioid overdose witnesses who were trained during the eight-month implementation phase. The cohort study found that 34.5% (out of 1388 study participants) witnessed an overdose during the implementation phase, and 90% of them reported using naloxone in cases of overdose. In almost all instances it was recorded that the victim survived (in 98.3% cases). Extrapolation of the naloxone use figures from the cohort study to the entire S-O-S project sample suggested that the implementation may have resulted in naloxone administration by as many as 4,388 individuals, with many lives saved as a result.