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All over the United States, communities big and small are struggling to fight the opioid epidemic. The news about the current drug crisis, which is mostly fueled by opioids, includes grim stories about a sharp rise in overdose deaths. Social workers are on the frontlines of this public health emergency. Many books address the causes of the opioid crisis as well as the clinical aspects, but this book offers a policy analysis. Dr. Ukockis has a unique perspective because she is both an academic and practitioner who has worked on the front lines of the opioid crisis by providing counseling in suboxone clinics to clients with opioid use disorder. Her real world practice experience ensures that the reader will become engaged in the policy discussions.
List of contents
- Chapter One: The Importance of Policy in the Opioid Crisis
- Chapter Two: Causes of the Opioid Crisis
- Chapter Three: The Political Context of the Opioid Crisis
- Chapter Four: The Punishing Effects of Poverty
- Chapter Five: Child Welfare and the Opioid Crisis
- Chapter Six: Women and OUD
- Chapter Seven: Special Populations
- Chapter Eight: The Role of Criminal Justice in the Opioid Crisis
- Chapter Nine: Ongoing Challenges
- Chapter Ten: Advocacy and the Opioid Crisis
About the author
Gail Ukockis, PhD, MSW, LSW, MA is an educator, advocate, writer, and social worker currently working at a substance abuse agency in Columbus, OH.
Summary
All types of communities across the US are struggling to fight the opioid epidemic. This book offers a policy analysis and provides points for in-depth discussion about the current drug crisis. It is meant to supplement a standard social welfare/social work or advocacy textbook and applies the concepts to the real-life challenges facing those with an opioid use disorder.
The Opioid Crisis offers no simplistic explanations or easy answers to the policy challenges caused by the opioid crisis. Instead, it provides analytic tools such as the Social Determinants of Health to help readers grapple with this multi-faceted problem. Topics include stigma related to drug use and poverty, child welfare, the overincarceration of drug users (especially persons of color), and policy solutions such as supervised injection sites. Harm reduction, a controversial approach, is also addressed as a policy issue. Central to the book's purpose is to increase the respect for the dignity and worth of persons with opioid use disorder who deserve the best possible support for their recoveries. The opioid crisis presents many policy challenges, but also several opportunities to fight for social justice--and win.
