Report Finds Gaps in Access to Opioid Addiction Help on Staten Island
New York City was in the throes of an alarming increase in opioid-related overdoses last summer when the city’s special narcotics prosecutor, Bridget G. Brennan, decided to follow up on a tip — not about a drug crime but about a potential academic collaboration. The approach revealed a severe treatment gap for addicts on Staten Island.
Ms. Brennan contacted Columbia University after a temporary worker in her office mentioned the Capstone Program, which pairs graduate students with “clients” for research projects. Ms. Brennan’s office soon began to coordinate an opioid-related research project between Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs and the Staten Island district attorney’s office.
The product of that collaboration, a report titled, “Staten Island Needs Assessment,” revealed significant gaps in access to addiction treatment in the borough. . .