Researcher Investigates Risk for Opioid Overdose in Rural W.Va.

Drug overdose deaths are on the rise in rural areas, and in some cases are overtaking death rates in urban areas. But unlike urban areas, there is little data about overdose prevention in rural America.

Based at West Virginia University’s Eastern Campus in Martinsburg, Joy Buck, a WVU School of Nursing professor, and her collaborators will gather real-time data about overdose trends and assess the cultural barriers to — and facilitators of — overdose prevention. The findings gleaned from her pilot project may prove useful in other rural areas across the nation.