Finding Fixes

A podcast about solutions to the opioid epidemic. Each episode we focus on a different solution, including prevention, treatment and harm reduction. Season Two drops October 15th, 2019 with a new episode every Tuesday. A project of InvestigateWest, hosted by Anna Boiko-Weyrauch.

S2 EP8 Needle exchanges and harm reduction 12/03/2019

S2 EP8 Needle exchanges and harm reduction This episode, we look at the idea of harm reduction and focus specifically on needle exchanges. Those are hundreds of places across the US that hand out clean equipment, the overdose reversal medicine Narcan ,and other help to people addicted to heroin and other drugs. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/12242501

S2 EP7 Helping family members of people with addiction 11/26/2019

S2 EP7 Helping family members of people with addiction Addiction is a family disease and family members of people with addiction need help, too. We look at an approach that is more effective than an intervention or Al-anon. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/12179354

S2 EP6 Treating addiction from the ER 11/19/2019

S2 EP6 Treating addiction from the ER Emergency rooms are the last safety net for the sickest, most marginalized people. On this episode we hear how emergency rooms can become the gateway for people with addiction to access evidence-based drug treatment and other help they may need. And how an accident with a broken hypodermic needle in her neck led to one woman's recovery from heroin. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/12090764

S2 EP5 Treating the wounds of trauma 11/12/2019

S2 EP5 Treating the wounds of trauma Trauma and pain and addiction are tightly woven together. But, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is treatable and treating the wounds of trauma can help treat pain and addiction, too. We must pay attention to the toxic effects of trauma if we really want to help people stay away from drugs and feel better from chronic pain. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/11967686

S2 EP4 Medical Marijuana for Chronic Pain 11/05/2019

S2 EP4 Medical Marijuana for Chronic Pain Medical marijuana is now legal in dozens of states. Some chronic pain patients now rely on it in place of opioid painkillers. But, in the absence of formal medical guidance, many patients are going it on their own, with informal guidance from their peers. Some experts are not convinced though. They caution against potentially harmful side effects. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/11872736

S2 EP3 Treating Chronic Pain 10/29/2019

S2 EP3 Treating Chronic Pain What's the appropriate role of opioids in treating chronic pain? /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/11781743

S2 EP2 Treating Acute Pain 10/22/2019

S2 EP2 Treating Acute Pain The more opioids you get after surgery, the more likely you are to be dependent on them down the road. We follow a mother through her c-section to see how she deals with the pain after her daughter is born and avoids opioid painkillers. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/11619116

S2 EP1 Preventing Youth Addiction 10/15/2019

S2 EP1 Preventing Youth Addiction The best ways to prevent young people from getting addicted aren't what you think. Also, we find out how a rural community is making a dent in youth drug and alcohol use. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/11619053

BONUS: Why are we making this podcast? 07/23/2019

BONUS: Why are we making this podcast? Our team is hard at work on Season Two, which drops fall 2019, but in the meantime we wanted to answer a question a lot of people ask us: Why are we making this podcast? Why make a podcast about solutions to the opioid epidemic? /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/10600916

BONUS: How Shannon got off drugs 03/22/2019

BONUS: How Shannon got off drugs For Shannon McCarty, two things were crucial in her recovery: connections and timing. It started with timing – a key encounter just when she wanted to get off the drugs. And then it was the connections that kept her going. A police officer she could depend on. A sister who stayed in touch. A dog who gets her out of the house a few times a day. Shannon’s story helps us understand how solutions to the opioid epidemic can be incredibly personal. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/9106640

S1 Ep. 5: The jail turns things around 09/17/2018

S1 Ep. 5: The jail turns things around SOLUTION: Make incarceration an opportunity to get help and start healing. Make detox easier, get people with addiction drug treatment behind bars, and connect them to help as soon as they’re released. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056925

S1 Ep. 4: Professional hand-holders 09/17/2018

S1 Ep. 4: Professional hand-holders SOLUTION: Create teams of social workers and police officers who help homeless people with addiction get drug treatment and housing. Break the cycle of drug use, crime, and jail time by reaching out to people on the streets and in the woods, and asking them what help they need. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056903

S1 Ep. 3: Valuable lessons from a landslide 09/17/2018

S1 Ep. 3: Valuable lessons from a landslide SOLUTION: Get government to work more effectively. Use a disaster response playbook to organize county government around the opioid epidemic. Approach addicted people with compassion, as you’d approach a person with any other medical condition. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056729

Instructions on how to spot and stop an overdose 09/17/2018

Instructions on how to spot and stop an overdose Download instructions on how to recognize the signs of an overdose and administer Narcan to stop it. Drawn by Julia Drachman. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056714

S1 Ep. 2: A lifesaving nasal-spray 09/17/2018

S1 Ep. 2: A lifesaving nasal-spray SOLUTION: Get the overdose reversal drug, naloxone (aka Narcan) into the hands of everyone who needs it, and train them how to use it. Family, friends and people with addiction themselves can play a big role in stopping overdose death. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056704

S1 Ep. 1: Medicine that melts under your tongue 09/17/2018

S1 Ep. 1: Medicine that melts under your tongue SOLUTION: Treat addiction using evidence-based medication, like buprenorphine (aka Suboxone). Expand access to treatment through telemedicine. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/7056682

Preview of Finding Fixes Podcast 08/31/2018

Preview of Finding Fixes Podcast Finding Fixes is the first podcast dedicated to solutions to the opioid epidemic. /episode/index/show/findingfixes/id/6994100

Finding Fixes

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