• Menu
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Before Header

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
 
ARCADIA: Stronger Settlement Partnerships. Innovative Solutions.

Amaxx Workers Comp Blog

Reduce Workers Compensation Costs By 20-50%

Header Right

  • Home
    • Training Center
  • Search
    • Free Resources & Solutions
    • Subscribe to Free Newsletter
    • Create Free Training Center Account
    • Enroll in On-Demand Courses
    • Activate WC Mastery Membership
    • Request Strategic Coaching Session
    • Buy WC Guidebooks
  • Membership
    • Insider (free account)
    • WC Mastery
    • Teams & Managers Mastery
    • Training Partners
  • Products
    • On-Demand Courses
    • Specialty Courses
    • Certifications & Mastery Courses
    • Ultimate Guidebooks
    • Coaching
  • Blog
    • Video Blogs
    • COVID-19 / Coronavirus Pandemic
  • Login

Mobile Menu

  • Home
    • Training Center
  • Search
    • Free Resources & Solutions
    • Subscribe to Free Newsletter
    • Create Free Training Center Account
    • Enroll in On-Demand Courses
    • Activate WC Mastery Membership
    • Request Strategic Coaching Session
    • Buy WC Guidebooks
  • Membership
    • Insider (free account)
    • WC Mastery
    • Teams & Managers Mastery
    • Training Partners
  • Products
    • On-Demand Courses
    • Specialty Courses
    • Certifications & Mastery Courses
    • Ultimate Guidebooks
    • Coaching
  • Blog
    • Video Blogs
    • COVID-19 / Coronavirus Pandemic
  • Login
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
You are here: Home / Post Injury Systems / Opioids, Work, and Overdoses

Opioids, Work, and Overdoses

June 15, 2020 By //  by Ashley Clay

Many different factors—including a person’s genetics, socioeconomic status, education level, and mental health—can contribute to developing an opioid use disorder. This disorder has far-reaching effects—even in the workplace. Opioid misuse impacts the workforce in a variety of ways: increasing the risk of workplace injuries and/or errors, escalating workers’ compensation costs, increasing absenteeism and complaints to HR, and decreasing employee morale.

For example, a worker with a painkiller use disorder (like opioid painkillers) misses an average of six weeks of work each year. Workers with untreated substance use disorders often report having more than one employer in a year; this high turnover can cost employers more than $4,000 annually per employee with a substance use disorder.1

Click Link to Access Free PDF Download

“9-Element Blueprint To Create Your Workers’ Comp Employee Brochure”

Substance use disorders at work can be deadly. Ninety-five percent of all opioid overdoses occur in working-age adults, those between the ages of 18 – 64.2 Workplace overdose deaths have increased by 25% five years in a row.3

Ways to Prevent Opioid Misuse4

  • Educate yourself, family, and friends. Understand risk factors, reasons opioids are prescribed, alternative treatments for pain relief, treatment options, ways to safely discard unused medications, and warning signs someone is suffering from a substance use disorder.
  • Understand your healthcare plan. Many plans cover mental and behavioral health services. Participate in annual screenings with your healthcare provider. Have open discussions about alcohol and drug use.
  • Consider alternative treatment modalities if you are suffering from pain; for example: massage, ice or heat therapy, non-opioid medications (including topical treatments, NSAIDs, and acetaminophen), acupuncture, aqua therapy.
  • Know about your benefits, such as an employee assistance programs (EAP). This benefit is often underutilized and can help employees and/or their loved ones fight a substance use disorder. EAP may provide services such as: confidential counseling, access to medical treatment programs, over-the-phone consultations.
  • Minimize stress, focus on self-care. Ensure you are getting enough sleep, eating properly, and exercising; consider meditation. Remember that support systems are important. If you are recovering from addiction, make groups such as NA or AA a priority.
  • Get involved in community initiatives; encourage drug take-back programs.
  • Employers should: Train supervisors and employees on ways to spot signs of drug misuse. Have strong company policies regarding alcohol and substance use. Promote the use of EAP and offer lunch-and-learn opportunities to educate their staff. Ensure the return-to-work program is robust and does not place workers at an increased risk of re-injury.

Signs of an Opioid Overdose

More than 130 people in the U.S. die every day from an opioid overdose. However, only 20% of Americans are confident that they can identify the signs of an overdose.5 Let’s change that statistic.

An opioid overdose occurs when the level of medication in a person’s system causes their breathing to significantly slow or stop entirely—this results in death if there is no medical intervention.

Signs of an overdose include:6

  • Loss of consciousness or inability to respond/talk
  • Lack of response to outside stimulus
  • Limpness of the body
  • Gurgling sounds or drooling
  • Slow and shallow breathing or no breathing at all
  • Vomiting
  • Lighter skinned people may turn bluish purple
  • Darker skinned people may turn grayish
  • Clammy skin
  • Fingernails and lips may turn blue or purplish black

If you suspect someone is overdosing: Stay with them and call (or have someone else call) 9-1-1. Try to keep them awake (ask them questions, talk loudly). Stimulate the person by rubbing your knuckles into their sternum. If they are unconscious, roll them on their side with their face turned to the side and monitor for vomiting (this is a recovery position).7 Wait until EMS arrives.

FREE DOWNLOAD: “9-Element Blueprint To Create Your Workers’ Comp Employee Brochure”

Many first responders and law enforcement agents now carry and dispense the opioid overdose antidote naloxone. All Medcor clinics are equipped with naloxone. Naloxone rapidly reverses an opioid overdose and can quickly restore normal breathing. This medication will work within 2-5 minutes and stops the effects of opioids for 30 to 90 minutes.8

This article is not intended to diagnose or treat any condition or to give medical advice. Always consult your primary care provider for healthcare instructions. External links are provided as references and do not indicate an endorsement by Medcor. External links are subject to other sites’ terms of use and privacy policies.

Article originally published at: https://www.medcor.com/opioids-work-and-overdoses/

Author Ashley Clay, MSPAS, PA-C, Medcor Provider. Medcor helps employers reduce the costs of workers’ compensation and general health care by providing injury triage services and operating worksite health and wellness clinics. Medcor’s services are available 24/7 nationwide for worksites of any size in any industry. Headquartered in McHenry, Illinois, the company operates 174 clinics and provides triage services to over 90,000 worksites across all 50 states and US territories. Medcor’s triage methods are covered by U.S. & foreign patents, including U.S. No. 7,668,733; 7,716,070; & 7,720,692; other patents pending. Medcor is privately held. Learn more at www.medcor.com.

FREE DOWNLOAD: “9-Element Blueprint To Create Your Workers’ Comp Employee Brochure”


1 National Safety Council, “Implications of Drug Use for Employers,” https://www.nsc.org/work-safety/safety-topics/drugs-at-work/costs-for-employers

2 National Safety Council, “Opioids: FAQs and Stats to Know,” https://www.nsc.org/Portals/0/Documents/RxDrugOverdoseDocuments/RxKit/2019/Basics/Opioids-FAQs-Stats.pdf?ver=2019-08-19-163443-803

3 National Safety Council, “How Opioids Impact Your Employees’ Safety and Your Bottom Line,” https://www.nsc.org/Portals/0/Documents/RxDrugOverdoseDocuments/RxKit/2019/Basics/How-opioids-impact-employees-safety-and-bottom-line-infographic.pdf?ver=2019-08-19-163443-600

4 National Safety Council, “Preventing Opioid Misuse in the Workplace,” https://www.nsc.org/Portals/0/Documents/RxDrugOverdoseDocuments/RxKit/2019/Basics/Preventing-Opioid-Misuse-in-the-Workplace.pdf?ver=2019-08-19-163444-197

5 “Opioids: FAQs and Stats to Know.”

6 Harm Reduction Coalition, “Recognizing Opioid Overdose,” https://harmreduction.org/issues/overdose-prevention/overview/overdose-basics/recognizing-opioid-overdose/

7 Harm Reduction Coalition, “Call for Help!,” https://harmreduction.org/issues/overdose-prevention/overview/overdose-basics/responding-to-opioid-overdose/call-for-help/

8 Alliance for Action, “Naloxone Facts,” https://allianceforaction.org/individuals/naloxone/

Filed Under: Post Injury Systems

Related Articles

6 Factors to Consider in Failed Return To Work

6 Factors to Consider in Failed Return To Work

Utilize Different Return To Work Approach For Different Employees

Utilize Different Return To Work Approach For Different Employees

Mothers Teach Us to Master Workers’ Comp

Mothers Teach Us to Master Workers’ Comp

Convince Your Employer Of Return To Work Benefits

Convince Your Employer Of Return To Work Benefits

Grab Low Hanging WC Savings with Effective Post-Injury Response

Grab Low Hanging WC Savings with Effective Post-Injury Response

Return-To-Work: Create a Win/Win in Your Work Comp Program

Return-To-Work: Create a Win/Win in Your Work Comp Program
digital job description

Why and How Good Job Descriptions Help Reduce Workers’ Compensation Costs

Why and How Good Job Descriptions Help Reduce Workers’ Compensation Costs

Effective Communication Skills in Work Comp

Effective Communication Skills in Work Comp

3 Quick Fixes to Stop Out of Control Workers’ Comp Costs

3 Quick Fixes to Stop Out of Control Workers’ Comp Costs

The Art of Successful Return to Work

The Art of Successful Return to Work

Return to Work Works in Community

Return to Work Works in Community

Don’t Skip the Workers’ Comp Conversations

Don’t Skip the Workers’ Comp Conversations

Free Download

9-Element Blueprint To Create Your Workers' Comp Employee Brochure - FREE Download Click Here Now!

Train to Succeed

BECOME CERTIFIED IN WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

Proven Course Catalog & WC Toolbox Give You The Power To Achieve Lower Costs and Better Injured Worker Outcomes

VISIT WORKERS' COMP TRAINING CENTER

Previous Post: « COVID-19 and Home Office Workers’ Compensation
Next Post: Tackling The COVID-19 RTW Communications Challenge »

Primary Sidebar

FREE DOWNLOAD

9-Element Blueprint To Create Your Workers' Comp Employee Brochure - FREE Download Click Here Now!

Our Sponsors

Medcor

Injury Triage, Onsite Clinics
 

Catastrophic and Risk Solutions, Case Management Solutions, and Specialty Networks
 

ARCADIA - Enhancing Settlement Outcomes

The Structured Settlements Company
 

Post-Settlement Administration

Read Our Award-Winning Blog

Blog Categories

Search Our Archive

Subscribe to Our FREE Newsletter

Return-to-Work Essentials

Footer

Search Our Archive

Search our continually growing archive of over 2500 articles about Workers' Comp issues.

Quiclinks

  • Calculators
  • Terms & Abbreviations
  • Glossary of WC Premium Terms
  • WC Resources
  • Best Practices
  • Industries
  • Return-to-Work Essentials

RSS Recent Blog Posts

  • 6 Factors to Consider in Failed Return To Work
  • Rethinking Wellness Programs in Workers’ Comp
  • 11 Tips for Taking an Effective Recorded Statement in Workers’ Compensation Claims
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FEE NEWSLETTER
Let Us Help You Stomp Down the High Cost of Workers' Comp!
Top of Page ↑
  • Home
  • Training Center
  • Search
  • Membership
  • Products
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Login
Copyright © 2023 Amaxx, LLC. All Rights Reserved. · Privacy Policy / Legal Notice