Public Health Initiative-Texas Targeted Opioid Response

Public Health Initiative-Texas Targeted Opioid Response

Texas Targeted Opioid Response (TTOR) refers to a public health initiative under the operation of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) via the funding of the federal government from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This initiative is important to public health because the opioid crisis is increasingly becoming a silent epidemic in East Texas since people are hardly talking about it (Watkins, 2018). In 2017, for instance, a healthcare consulting firm called Castlight Health ranked Texas among the top 25 cities in the U.S. for opioid abuse (Watkins, 2018). More specifically, four of the U.S. 25 cities that misuse opioids are in Texas, including Longview, Odessa, Amarillo, and Texarkana (Texas Health and Human Services-THHS, 2022).

Opioids are medication types that minimize pain (THHS, 2022). When opioids are taken as prescribed medicine by doctors, including Percocet, Vicodin, Oxycontin, and Ultram, they help manage severe chronic or short-term pain. However, misuse of opioids results in the risks of overdose, addiction, and dependence (THHS, 2022). THHS (2022) reported that more than 100 people in the U.S. perish daily because of overdose, entailing illicit opioids such as heroin or prescription. The organization adds that all over the U.S., about 80% of people who use heroin have reported misuse of prescription opioids before heroin. This means that the TTOR initiative is important in addressing these threats to the health of the people of Texas.

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Demographic data such as socioeconomic information, including internet access, employment status, income, age, gender, and ethnicity, will help identify the specific populations struggling with opioid addiction or misuse. According to THHS (2022), this information will increase the capacity of clinics, physicians, and relevant authorities to offer medication-assisted treatments, prevention measures, and recovery for those affected.

I will know if the program improved the public health of the impacted population through the THHS’s quality measures tracking system. The multiple-provider use of opioids and high-dose use are often added to the information tracking system of THHS (THHS, 2017). The results of their measures are usually calculated yearly at the managed care organization and program level. In addition, this information is shared with Managed Care Organizations for quality improvement use and later shared with the public on the Texas Healthcare Learning Collaborative portal.

References

Texas Health and Human Services- THHS (2017). Factsheet: Texas’ Oversight of Opioid Prescribing and Monitoring of Opioid Use. https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region6/61804000_Factsheet.pdf

Texas Health and Human Services- THHS (2022). How Texas is Taking Action. https://txopioidresponse.org/

Watkins, L. (2018). Opioid Addiction: A Silent Epidemic in East Texas. Palestine Herald-Press.

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Research 1 local, state, or federal public health initiative that you believe is important to public health. For example, you could research a county program to increase access to healthy food for low-income families or a federal program that prevents and controls vector-borne diseases (i.e., diseases from blood-feeding vectors, such as mosquitoes and ticks).

Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words:

Which public health initiative did you choose, and why is it essential?
What impact does using demographic data have on that public health initiative?
What type of data do you believe is most valuable for this purpose?
How will you know if the program improved the public health of the impacted population?