Community Need, Credibility, and Applicability
Despite respect to any particular demographic, the problem of addiction has had a significant
influence on many people. People of many origins, including those of varied colors, heights, and
religious affiliations, have been influenced by the addiction issue. The problem of addiction has
had a big impact on Springfield, Vermont, where I live. This issue has affected me personally as
well, and I've read obituaries of people who went to school with me but tragically died from their
addictions. The pleasurable feelings that follow a drug's influence on the brain's reward system
are a common cause of dependency on drugs. According to "Getting to Know Drug Use and
Addiction" (2019), the dopamine release floods the reward system and causes a feeling of
euphoria and omnipotence that drives people to endlessly chase the experience irrespective of the
repercussions.
Preliminary Monthly Vermont Opioid-Related Fatalities for 2019 data summary from the
Vermont Department of Health Alcohol & Drug Abuse department shows that a total of 55
deaths in Vermont were related to opioid usage in 2018. In Windsor County, where I presently
live, 4 of these fatalities were documented (2019 Preliminary Monthly Vermont Opioid-Related
Fatalities, 2019). Although some would consider 55 fatalities to be trivial, I personally think that
even one fatality brought on by addiction is inexcusable.
The 2019 Preliminary Monthly Vermont Opioid-Related Fatalities report did not take into
account deaths from murder or killing, long-term use of substances for illnesses like HIV, liver
disease, or infection, or fatalities brought on by injuries related to substance abuse, such as car
accidents. This suggests that the number of fatalities attributable to addiction exceeds the 55
cases that have been officially documented, as it obviously rises when alcohol and other drugs
unrelated to opioids are taken into account. According to the 2019 "Naloxone Distribution and
Administration in Vermont - Data Brief" report, it is rather frightening to learn that 2,016 people
in my home state of Vermont required the administration of the opioid antagonist Naloxone
(Narcan) in order to avert an opioid overdose in 2018.
Three secondary sources are being used by me in my study of addiction. These sources include
papers and published studies that offer factual information pertinent to my topic. Recent
publications from the Vermont Department of Health include "2019 Preliminary Monthly
Vermont Opioid-Related Fatalities" and "Naloxone Distribution and Administration in
Vermont."The summaries were released on June 8, 2019, and September 11, 2019, respectively.
My academic experience suggests that the material being presented is current and has a
decreased likelihood of being out-of-date. Contact information is provided on the website of the
Vermont Department of Health, which houses the plans and reports, and all accessible plans and
publications are properly attributed.
The third reference I have comes from the government-run National Institute on Drug Abuse
website, which is where I found it. I can confidently claim that both papers come from reliable
sources based on the evidence. The most recent revision of the publication I used,
"Understanding Drug Use and Addiction," was made in June 2018. It still falls within the
relevant time even if it is a little bit older than the articles downloaded from the website of the
Vermont Department of Health. This article's lack of a clearly identified author may make one
doubt the information's reliability and cast doubt on the origin of it. I used a quote from the
article even though I think the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH) is a trustworthy source.
I used the definition of drug addiction from the NIH article "Understanding Drug Use and
Addiction" to explain the notion in my introduction paragraph while assessing the secondary
sources for their applicability to my study. This was done to provide readers a thorough
comprehension of the subject at issue and to clarify why people would want the euphoric
experience despite its lethal effects. The use of this article and the information gleaned from it
will strengthen my study by illuminating the background to the topic. Moving on to secondary
sources obtained from the Vermont Department of Health, they are important because they
provide up-to-date, real data on the opioid death rate and the rate of Narcan dispensing in
Vermont and my chosen area. I can successfully include the depth of study required to address
my chosen subject matter of addiction by combining the "why" along with facts acquired from
my specific state and neighborhood.
References
2023 Preliminary Monthly Vermont Opioid-Related Fatalities. (2023). Retrieved from
https://www.healthvermont.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/ADAP_2019MonthlyO
pioid-RelatedFatalities.pdf
Naloxone Distribution and Administration in Vermont - Data Brief. (2023). Retrieved from
https://www.healthvermont.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/ADAP_Naloxone_Data
_Brief_1.pdf
Understanding Drug Use and Addiction. (2023). Retrieved from
https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/understanding-drug-use-addiction
