Local Drug Overdose Problems: Pitt School Of Pharmacy And Allegheny County Human Services To Co-Sponsor Conference

PITTSBURGH , April 2008 — The University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy and the Allegheny County Department of Human Services, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services will co-sponsor a day-long conference to address the problem of drug overdose deaths within local communities from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., May 2 at the University of Pittsburgh’s William Pitt Union main ballroom. The conference will initiate a strategic prevention plan to address the problem of overdose.

“Overdose has become a significant public health concern in Allegheny County,” noted Janice Pringle, Ph.D., research assistant professor of pharmacy and therapeutics, University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy. “This conference is the launching point from which the community will work together to make a sustained impact on this problem. It has become apparent to those of us involved in planning this initiative, that pharmacists can play a key role in reducing the risk for drug overdoses in this community.”

Working groups will identify and implement appropriate community impact activities at the community level. Local leaders convened by the Allegheny County Department of Human Services, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services, have been meeting for over a year to discuss how Allegheny County should address the steadily increasing number of drug overdose deaths in local communities. These leaders and organizations include: Allegheny County Department of Human Services, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services, Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of UPMC’s Narcotic Addiction Treatment Program, Bridges to Hope, Pyramid Healthcare, Community Care Behavioral Health, Gateway Rehabilitation Center and Prevention Point Pittsburgh, along with other provider and consumer organizations.

“The School of Pharmacy is delighted to support the Allegheny County community in addressing the very serious problem of drug overdose deaths,” said Patricia D. Kroboth, Ph.D., dean of the School of Pharmacy and professor of pharmaceutical sciences. “We believe that the solution to this tragic problem will best arise from the collective energy of our community born from a true collaborative effort.”

Conference registration is free and open to the public. For additional information or to register online, please visit http://www.pharmacy.pitt.edu/dept/conference/index.html.

Chartered in 1878, the School of Pharmacy is the oldest of the University of Pittsburgh’s Schools of the Health Sciences and ranked in the top 10 nationwide. The school is on the forefront of educating pharmacy’s future practitioners with its four-year Pharm.D. program and is a leader in research, with endeavors ranging from patient care outcomes and human clinical research to research in molecular genetics. Like the five other Schools of the Health Sciences, the School of Pharmacy is affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, an internationally renowned academic medical center, which provides the region’s largest network of tertiary, specialty and community hospitals. Collectively, these facilities provide one of the nation’s most complete health centers for teaching, patient care and research in the health sciences. For more information about the school, visit http://www.pharmacy.pitt.edu.