Using Near Real-Time Data to Enhance Coordinated Community Responses to Opioid Overdose in City of Detroit, Michigan

Toolkit Background and Development

Accessing the Toolkit

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Using Near Real-time Data to Enhance Coordinated Community Responses to Opioid Overdose​

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services funded a pilot project in the city of Detroit, Michigan to determine how near real-time suspected non-fatal and fatal opioid overdose data through the use of SOS data reports and the web-based dashboard, can be used to improve planning, implementation, and responses to opioid overdoses. The project was conducted jointly by the Center for Disease Control & Prevention-funded University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center and the Detroit Health Department.

This year long mixed methods project proceeded by convening community stakeholders involved in opioid overdose response and prevention efforts in Detroit, Michigan. Throughout the project, stakeholder feedback and data usage practices were elicited through a combination of focus groups, one-on-one interviews, and surveys.

Through input from local content experts, we determined our stakeholder group with representation from communities across the city of Detroit. The community stakeholder group was comprised of individuals and organizations working in four sectors of the city.

Primary Project Activities

Baseline Stakeholder Interviews & Focus Group

Weekly SOS Reports Distributed for 2 months & 1 feedback Survey

Final Stakeholder Interviews & Focus Group

Creation of Community Toolkit on Promising Strategies

Qualitative Coding & Analysis

Key Stakeholders

Public health stakeholders included individuals working at the local health department.
Public safety stakeholders was comprised of local police.
Treatment provider stakeholders were comprised of individuals working in hospitals and in- and out-patient substance use disorder treatment facilities.
Community outreach stakeholders included representatives from organizations working in community naloxone administration, basic necessities support, and harm reduction services and training


Interviewing Stakeholders, Reporting Findings, and Enhancing Overdose Response

Stakeholders convened for an initial focus group and individual 1-on-1 interviews to identify: 1) How near real-time overdose reports can be used to inform prevention and response, 2) Barriers to prevention and response, and 3) Effective methods to coordinate a community-level response strategy.

Stakeholders then received near real-time opioid overdose reports for their jurisdiction on a weekly basis for eight weeks, and their feedback was solicited over time through two surveys. Due to our systems capabilities, community stakeholders received city-wide as well as county-wide reports. A final focus group and final one-on-one interviews emphasized the mobilization of data-driven coordinated community responses through near real-time reports.

The strategies shared in this toolkit are the results of our team’s qualitative analysis of the data collected from community stakeholders. This toolkit is broken up into sectors based on the community stakeholder groups defined above. Within each of the stakeholder sectors we include promising opioid overdose response and prevention strategies conceptualized by the stakeholders, barriers impacting the promising strategy, and how near real-time data may help to mitigate barriers and enhance response.

Funding Disclosures

Research reported herein was supported by a grant to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Number NU90TP921987 and a grant to the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention Award Number R49-CE-002099 andR49-CE-003085. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.

Acknowledgements

This toolkit was developed by members of the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center and the Detroit Health Department in collaboration with individuals and organizations participating in opioid overdose response and prevention efforts in the City of Detroit. We would like to give special thanks to the organizations who participated in the community stakeholder group without whose contributions this work would not be possible.