Just Rapidly Identifying Drugs Involved In Suspected Overdoses

In episode two of our Community-based Solutions f…

An episode of the Just Science podcast, hosted by RTI International, titled "Just Rapidly Identifying Drugs Involved In Suspected Overdoses" was published on June 28, 2024 and runs 28 minutes.

June 28, 2024 ·28m · Just Science

0:00 / 0:00

Summary

In episode two of our Community-based Solutions for Substance Use Challenges season, Just Science sits down with Bill Barbour, Fatal Overdose Surveillance Program Manager at King County Medical Examiner’s Office, to discuss his team’s methods for rapid toxicology results after a suspected overdose death. For many medical examiner and coroner offices across the country, it can take several weeks to receive results for post-mortem toxicology reports, which leads to outdated drug trend data and an inability to efficiently address and prevent overdoses in the area. In response to this issue, the King County Medical Examiner’s Office in Washington applied for funding to implement the Fatal Overdose Surveillance Program, which takes a multi-pronged approach to quickly screen for drugs after a suspected overdose. Listen along as Bill discusses the goals of the Overdose Surveillance Program, the challenges of implementing drug screening technologies for rapid death certification, and how the King County office uses their findings to educate the community on emerging drug trends and prevention opportunities. This Just Science season is supported, in part, by RTI Award No. 15PNIJ-21-GK-02192-MUMU, awarded by the National Institute of Justice, and by RTI Award No. 15PBJA-23-GK-02250-COAP, awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Both are agencies within the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

Episode Description

In episode two of our Community-based Solutions for Substance Use Challenges season, Just Science sits down with Bill Barbour, Fatal Overdose Surveillance Program Manager at King County Medical Examiner’s Office, to discuss his team’s methods for rapid toxicology results after a suspected overdose death. For many medical examiner and coroner offices across the country, it can take several weeks to receive results for post-mortem toxicology reports, which leads to outdated drug trend data and an inability to efficiently address and prevent overdoses in the area. In response to this issue, the King County Medical Examiner’s Office in Washington applied for funding to implement the Fatal Overdose Surveillance Program, which takes a multi-pronged approach to quickly screen for drugs after a suspected overdose. Listen along as Bill discusses the goals of the Overdose Surveillance Program, the challenges of implementing drug screening technologies for rapid death certification, and how the King County office uses their findings to educate the community on emerging drug trends and prevention opportunities. This Just Science season is supported, in part, by RTI Award No. 15PNIJ-21-GK-02192-MUMU, awarded by the National Institute of Justice, and by RTI Award No. 15PBJA-23-GK-02250-COAP, awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Both are agencies within the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

Share this episode

Similar Episodes

#207 – Defense and attack strategies

Apr 11, 2026 ·43m

Yoga Research & Neuropathic Pain: Expert Insights with Jennifer Gewandter, PhD, MPH

Apr 9, 2026 ·56m

Why Anxiety Might Not Be What You Think - Root Causes of Stress & Women’s Mental Health with Dr. Ellen Vora

Apr 7, 2026 ·69m

The No. 1 Contributor to Chronic Pain & Why it's NOT Just a Result of Aging with Dr. Dan Ginader

Mar 31, 2026 ·59m

#206 – Ancient Christianities

Mar 27, 2026 ·59m

Belief, Perception & Your Health: Shorts

Mar 26, 2026 ·12m

Similar Podcasts

intuitions behind Data Science Ashay Javadekar No math, no equations, just intuitions behind Data Science. Safety Frontiers Podcast Cristian Sylvestre / David Pope Much of what is “new” in safety has not been proven to make any difference to safety performance, some of it possibly making it worse. Our aim is to use legitimate science to explore ways to help improve safety and move beyond just fixing the environment or improving the system or making safety more conscious.These three approaches helped us improve safety and brought us to where we are today, but they are struggling to help us improve further.In the Safety Frontiers Podcast, our focus is to explore novel ways of thinking about safety: using different approaches to make systems more effective, strengthen safety culture, and take a deep dive into the discoveries and insights gained from neurobiology and brain research over the last 5 years. This will be new information to many. We know disruptive thinking challenges long-held beliefs and accepted norms. As such, it could be confronting for some. However, significant improvements tend to come from new perspectives and that is what we are StoryCraft Ben Hart A show about the art and science of storytelling. Every episode, host Ben Hart chats with someone who knows stories deep down in their bones: journalists, communications experts, campaigners. It's a podcast for anyone who wants to be a better storyteller, has an interest in what makes stories tick or just loves a good yarn. Sports Talk - Irtaza vs Mustafa Sports talk - Irtaza vs Mustafa Hey everyone, we are just two brothers who love getting into heated debates about sports. During these difficult times of the pandemic we decided to do something fun and help people relax and stay positive. We will discuss sports from all around the world and have special guest join us on some episodes. We will connect medical science in relationship with sports and athletes. Hope you enjoy!

URL copied to clipboard!