MMS Launches Opioid-education Campaign During Football Telecasts

WALTHAM — The Mass. Medical Society (MMS), along with Boston radio station 98.5 FM the Sports Hub and New England Patriots safety Devin McCourty, will team up this fall to educate the public about steps they can take to help bring the opioid overdose epidemic under control.

The MMS is sponsoring messages on the 11 Massachusetts affiliates in the Sports Hub’s radio network, informing listeners about the safe storage and proper disposal of prescription medications. The messages feature McCourty and Dr. Dennis Dimitri, MMS president. They begin with the team’s first pre-season game on Aug. 13 and will be heard during every game of New England’s preseason and regular season.

“The opioid epidemic is one of the most critical public health issues of this time,” said Dimitri. “In many cases, prescription drug abuse is the starting point on the road to illicit drug addiction.

“Most opioid abuse occurs with medications that were prescribed for others,” he added. “One very effective way to reduce the supply in the communities is for patients and their families to ensure that medications don’t end up in the wrong hands and harming someone they love. This means safely storing medications, and then disposing of them properly when they’re no longer needed.”

Added McCourty, “prescription drug abuse is a widespread problem. Therefore, I felt it was important to talk about the need for proper storage and disposal of these medications. By safeguarding your meds, you can prevent kids from accessing these drugs at home.”

The messages will receive additional airtime during the week on the network’s home station in Boston. The Massachusetts network affiliates airing the messages during the games are in Worcester, Springfield, Pittsfield, Fitchburg, North Adams, New Bedford, Greenfield, Fall River, Hyannis, and Milford.

The radio campaign is part of the Mass. Medical Society’s comprehensive program to address prescription drug abuse and opioid overdoses in the Commonwealth. In May, the society published a set of opioid-prescribing guidelines for physicians and other prescribers. The MMS also made its complete set of online continuing-medical-education courses on pain management and opioid prescribing free to all prescribers. It also launched a comprehensive public education website, www.massmed.org/smartandsafe, with information for patients, physicians, prescribers, and policymakers about the crisis.