OrthoCarolina Research Institute joins forces with More Powerful NC campaign

July 1st, 2019

There’s no denying it, the US is battling an opioid crisis. And it’s hitting close to home for many North Carolinians.

The OrthoCarolina Research Institute (OCRI) is proud to partner with More Powerful NC as we strive to combat the epidemic in our own backyard.

The statistics are staggering:

• 130+ people die in the US from opioid-related drug overdoses every day (HHS.gov/ opioids)
• Nearly 80% of heroin users reported misusing prescription opioids prior to heroin (HHs.gov/ opioids)
• Opioid-related overdose deaths in NC have doubled in the past 10 years (morepowerfulnc.org)

After embarking on the Carolinas Opioid Reduction Effort (CORE) initiative in late 2017, OCRI jumped at the opportunity to join NC Attorney General Josh Stein and NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen in their campaign to raise awareness and provide resources to those impacted by opioid addiction. The idea is that “together, we are more powerful than opioids.”

“This crisis is our state’s most serious public health and public safety issue,” Attorney General Stein said in an announcement about the More Powerful NC campaign.

“Opioid addiction has had a devastating impact on our state, and we continue to urgently address this crisis,” said Secretary Cohen. “We’ve made progress, but there is still much work to be done to educate people about the dangers of opioids, prevent addiction, and expand access to treatment.”

Parents, educators, coaches, local government officials, and others can find actionable ways to help their communities through resources on the More Powerful NC website.

“There’s no single solution to this crisis,” Stein said. “But there are so many things that each of us can do to help fight it. Together, we are more powerful than these opioids. Together, we can save lives. Together, we can take back our communities.

If any of this sparks your curiosity, go to morepowerfulnc.org where you’ll find steps to safely store and dispose of pain medication, as well as resources for finding treatment and recovery support.

As a research organization, we are committed to finding alternatives to opioids for our patients. The CORE Project is a clinical trial where we are investigating a unique pain control medication regimen that targets pain receptors in different ways and does not use traditional opioid medication. Ultimately, we hope to prevent future opioid abuse at the initial encounter.

CLICK HERE to learn more about the CORE Project.

As many organizations are currently working to end the opioid crisis, we believe that we are all stronger together and can build a more powerful NC.