Symposium Title: Opioid Overdose Among People Who Inject Drugs – Findings from two Delhi-based studies

Drug Overdose is the leading cause of drug-related deaths among people who inject drugs (PWID). Those PWID who experience non-fatal overdose are more likely to experience a fatal overdose in the future. Most opioid overdoses occur in the community setting and hence it is necessary for the PWID as well as people in the community to identify opioid overdose, know the risk factors for the same, as well as have the knowledge on how to manage when they witness a person having an opioid overdose. This is necessary to reduce the overdose related mortality and to motivate the person to take treatment for drug use disorder. The current symposium will discuss about the prevalence of non- fatal opioid overdose among people who inject drugs as well as the knowledge about the opioid overdose and its management among PWID, based on two independent studies conducted at Delhi – one of the top 10 states of India with highest prevalence of opioid use. The symposium will also discuss the various strategies or interventions that needs to be done at the individual level, community level and programme levels in order to prevent or reduce the incidence of opioid overdoses and the harms associated with it. Topic 1: Opioid Overdose among PWID – Background (Ravindra Rao) Topic 2: Prevalence, knowledge, and risk factors of non-fatal opioid overdose among PWID – Study 1 (Romil Saini) Topic 3: Rates and Knowledge about Non-Fatal Opioid Overdose among PWID – Study 2 (Preethy Kathiresan) Topic 4: Discussion and Conclusions (Ravindra Rao)