Fatal drug overdoses have long been the focus of the nation’s overdose crisis, but non-fatal overdoses occur far more frequently. These events often bring people to emergency departments, creating opportunities to connect them with lifesaving treatment and prevention services.
Yet many patients do not receive follow-up care. At the same time, overdose patterns are becoming increasingly complex, driven by illicit fentanyl, stimulants, alcohol and polysubstance use. Florida reported more than 31,000 suspected overdose-related emergency department visits in 2024, including more than 5,000 in Palm Beach County.
New research from Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine is revealing important geographic patterns in non-fatal overdoses, offering new insight into where non-fatal overdoses are concentrated and where prevention efforts could potentially have the greatest impact. The findings also point to environmental and social factors that may influence where overdoses occur.
Using the Florida Department of Health’s overdose surveillance data, researchers mapped non-fatal overdoses across Palm Beach County and compared indoor and outdoor events by demographic and social characteristics. They also examined associations between overdose locations and built-environment features, including gas stations and major transportation corridors…