Anwer, Hiba
(2019)
Evaluation of the effectiveness of the good samaritan provision of act 139 in Allegeny county, Pennsylvania.
Master Essay, University of Pittsburgh.
Abstract
Introduction: The Good Samaritan Provision of Act 139 was implemented in Allegheny County, PA in 2014 to serve as an intervention to curb opioid related overdose deaths. The Good Samaritan Law provided legal immunity to witnesses of overdoses and those overdosing in order to reduce barriers and encourage residents to call 911.
Objective: Our study evaluated the effectiveness of the Good Samaritan Provision of Act 139. The purpose was to determine whether the implementation of the provision changed 911 calling behavior.
Methods: Allegheny CountyStat provided 911 dispatch data for 2011 to 2018. We studied whether there was an increase of overdose related 911 dispatches after the implementation of the Good Samaritan Law using an interrupted time series model. To account for confounding, the correlation between opioid related overdose deaths and overdose related dispatches was evaluated at annual intervals.
Results: The interrupted time series model was not statistically significantly (p=0.48). The annual correlations between opioid related overdose deaths and overdose related dispatches found that only 2016 and 2017 were strongly positively correlated; with the increase of overdose deaths there was an increase of overdose related dispatches.
Conclusion: The interrupted time series model results show that the number of overdoses related 911 dispatches did not follow a predicted upward trend in increased calls. However, this does not mean that there was no change in calls, only that the change in the number of dispatches post intervention was not linear. Results from the 2016 and 2017 correlations indicate that there was no association in the number of overdose related dispatches attributable to the GSL. Instead the rapid increase of overdose deaths may have caused the increase in calls. The evaluation the Good Samaritan Provision of Act 139 has public health significance because it serves an opportunity to understand the barriers that surround this intervention. This law is one step of many, put into place to curb opioid related overdose deaths, which is currently a public health crisis. Evaluating the effectiveness of the Good Samaritan Provision of Act 139 allows the county to learn what is working and allows them to address any gaps that exist.
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Details
| Item Type: |
Other Thesis, Dissertation, or Long Paper
(Master Essay)
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
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| Contributors: |
| Contribution | Contributors Name | Email | Pitt Username | ORCID  |
|---|
| Committee Chair | Glynn, Nancy W. | glynnn@edc.pitt.edu | glynnn | UNSPECIFIED | | Committee Member | Buchanich, Jeanine M. | jeanine@pitt.edu | jeanine | UNSPECIFIED | | Committee Member | Jalal, Hawre | hjalal@pitt.edu | hjalal | UNSPECIFIED | | Committee Member | Eric G., Hulsey | eric.hulsey@gmail.com | UNSPECIFIED | UNSPECIFIED |
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| Date: |
13 December 2019 |
| Date Type: |
Submission |
| Number of Pages: |
39 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
School of Public Health > Epidemiology |
| Degree: |
MPH - Master of Public Health |
| Thesis Type: |
Master Essay |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Other ID: |
hia17@pitt.edu |
| Date Deposited: |
11 Mar 2020 18:35 |
| Last Modified: |
20 Apr 2020 16:30 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/37851 |
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