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Background and Rationale
Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and resulting drug overdoses continue to impact our community. SUD is
defined by the DSM-5 as “occurring when the recurrent use of alcohol and/or drugs causes clinically and
functionally significant impairment, such as health problems, disability, and failure to meet major
responsibilities at work, school, or home.” Since SUD affects families and the greater community in
addition to the individual, it is important to understand population level impacts of substance misuse
outcomes. Notably, many cities across Hampton Roads experience higher drug overdose, emergency
department visits, and drug overdose fatality rates compared to other cities in the Commonwealth of
Virginia.
Of the six localities served by HPHD, the Cities of Hampton and Newport News have the highest burden
of SUD. In fact, the age-adjusted rate for overdose deaths in Hampton (35.8) and Newport News (37.3) is
much higher than that of the Commonwealth of Virginia’s total rate (26.9). This is further supported by the
CHA findings, where SUD was identified as a priority health concern in all HPHD localities – but was even
more reflected in the results and data for Hampton and Newport News.
It's important to note that individuals from any background can struggle with SUD. In Hampton, most of
the opioid-related Emergency Medical Services (EMS) incidents occur in White populations, whereas
Black-African American populations are the majority of opioid-related EMS incidents in Newport News.
Both cities share the commonality of those most affected in the 30 to 39 years of age group. Additionally,
men are involved in more incidents than women (FAACT).
Although both cities have access to two non-specialized hospital systems and several SUD treatment
facilities, opioid incident and fatality rates have increased throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
In part, this is due to an increase in overall risk behavior due to the socially isolating nature of COVID-19
prevention protocols. However, it can also be attributed to staff shortages in healthcare fields, including
high staff turnover and a lack of adequate resources, as more resources were dedicated to COVID-19
efforts. This combination of pandemic-related problems led to long waitlists for SUD treatment, which
contributed to overdose incidents.
Other barriers to care for individuals struggling with SUD include lack of awareness of local support
services. The data from the HPHD CHA found the support services most individuals were least aware of
included addiction assistance services (54.3%), housing assistance (29.4%), and prescription assistance
programs (27.8%). Additional barriers to care identified in the CHA were costs of care (33.6%), waitlists
(28.3%), and lack of health insurance (20.9%). The barriers to access these social determinants of health
further contribute to health disparities in our community.
However, most telling is what the community identified as their priority health concerns. Respondents
were asked to review a list of common community health issues and identify what they view as the most
important health concerns in the community where they live or work. Alcohol/Substance Use
(Prescription, Illegal Drugs, Opioids) was identified as a top concern for professional stakeholders
(44.6%). Alcohol/Substance Use was identified as a top priority for 29.9% of community members. Both
professional and community stakeholders identified Behavioral/Mental Health as a top concern, 77.8% for
professionals and 59.8% for community stakeholders.
As a result of the data and identified need in our community, a substance use and opioid response
program, Project LEAD, was initiated. Project LEAD is raising awareness and de-stigmatizing
substance use in our community. The project aims to improve health resources and linkages to care,
provide harm reduction resources, increase naloxone saturation in our community, and bridge gaps to
improve health outcomes for all. Additional information on Project LEAD can be found on the HPHD
website at https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/hampton-peninsula/lead/.
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