Connecting Communities to Substance Use Services Practical Approaches for First Responders

A first responder is a person with specialized training who, in the course of their professional duties, responds to medical or other emergencies and provides assistance or incident resolution. First responders, including law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel, often encounter people experiencing emergencies and other challenges related to substance use or misuse, substance use disorder, or drug overdose. For example, in 2019, about 9 percent of all 911-initiated EMS activations with patient contact may have involved substance use. In 2020, naloxone was one of the top 10 medications EMS personnel administered, with over 242,000 opioid-related EMS encounters nationwide.

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