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Ohio’s opioid epidemic is no secret. As the state with the second highest rate of fatal opioid related overdoses in 2017, libraries are well positioned to witness the effects of this crisis. Maybe you have seen a patron overdose in your library. Perhaps you have disposed of drug paraphernalia, or you have yet to see any direct evidence of a problem with opioids in your community. If you have witnessed the epidemic first-hand, or only suspect an underlying issue in your community the statistics are bleak.
The Public Library Association and the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) collaborated to conduct a study of how public libraries across the country are responding to the opioid crisis. One public library in Twinsburg, Ohio participated in the study. We can learn how one Ohio library responded, but what do you think? How has your library served their community in regards to opioids?
Download, share, or read the full study here: https://www.oclc.org/content/dam/research/publications/2019/oclcresearch-public-libraries-respond-to-opioid-crisis-summary-report.pdf
Use the comments to share your opioid epidemic story; we all have one tucked away somewhere. I’ll go first.
Allen, Scott G., Larra Clark, Michele Coleman, Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Chris Cyr, Kendra Morgan, and Mercy Procaccini. 2019 Libraries Respond to the Opioid Crisis with Their Communities: Summary Report. Dublin, OH: OCLC. https://doi.org/10.25333/qgrn-hj36.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2019, March 30). Ohio Opioid Summary. Retrieved November 12, 2019, from https://www.drugabuse.gov/opioid-summaries-by-state/ohio-opioid-summary.
OLC - RISD 
Several of my high school classmates have succumbed to opioid addiction. A number of my friends have died. They leave their children and their friends to cope with their deaths. Talking about it isn’t easy, but making others aware, and keeping the conversations open and promote healing in a community.