In an attempt to encourage safer drug use behaviors, University of New Mexico College of Pharmacy students and their faculty advisor have made it their mission to distribute fentanyl testing strips to people who use street-purchased opioids.
“We have patients coming in who are getting illicit fentanyl off the street, or maybe someone shared medication with them not knowing it has fentanyl in it,” said Amy Bachyrycz, PharmD, RPH, an assistant professor in the UNM College of Pharmacy. “These are things we want to help prevent.”
Bachyrycz is the faculty leader of the College of Pharmacy’s chapter of the Operation Substance Use Disorders Initiative, an educational program in which student pharmacists work to prevent misuse of prescription medication, break the stigma of substance use disorders, support patients in recovery and advocate for the profession.
Because fentanyl isn’t detectable without a test strip, people taking fentanyl-laced drugs are at a greater risk of overdose. That’s why, experts say, it’s important for fentanyl testing strips to be easily accessible, and why Bachyrycz and pharmacy students Maria Ybargüengoitia Agüero and Kathryn McNeil often distribute free testing strips during community outreach events and health fairs.
In the past year, the trio have attended seven events, engaging with approximately 3,000 people.
“It was a little bit difficult at first to start the conversation, because we don’t want to imply anything, and we never want to profile anyone,” Bachyrycz said. “So, we usually just try to give them to everybody.”
“We encourage everybody to take them, because you never know when it could be useful,” Ybargüengoitia Agüero added.
The test strips are dipped into drug residue dissolved in water. A single pink line appearing on the left-hand side of the strip indicates that fentanyl has been detected. Two pink lines mean fentanyl has not been detected.
Studies have shown positive fentanyl test strip results are associated with changes in drug use behavior and perceptions of overdose safety, including taking less of the drug and not taking it at all.
The goal is harm reduction, it’s not a fix to the fentanyl issue; it’s a way to prevent death.
“The goal is harm reduction,” Bachyrycz said. “It’s not a fix to the fentanyl issue; it’s a way to prevent death.”
According to the New Mexico Department of Health, 74% of all overdose deaths in the state in 2019 involved opioids. Preventable opioid overdose deaths increased 457% since 1999 in the U.S., which led public health officials to declare a nationwide opioid overdose epidemic.
Under the supervision of a licensed medical professional, fentanyl has a legitimate medical use. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid typically prescribed to treat patients with chronic severe pain or severe pain following surgery.
But illicit fentanyl – which is primarily manufactured in foreign clandestine labs and smuggled into the U.S. – is often be sold alone as well as used as an adulterant. Because of its potency and low cost, drug dealers will often mix fentanyl with other recreational drugs including heroin, methamphetamine and MDMA
“Fentanyl is similar to morphine, but is 100 times more potent,” Ybargüengoitia Agüero said.
Unfortunately, fentanyl’s high potency also means that even a small amount can be fatal. If the user isn’t aware that the drug they bought has been adulterated, this could easily lead to an overdose.
“When people take small amounts of it, it can send them into an overdose,” Ybargüengoitia Agüero said. “That’s why we’ve seen such an increase in accidental deaths, because people don’t know that fentanyl is basically in everything.”
Ybargüengoitia Agüero added that it’s important for users to test their illicit drug supply for fentanyl every time, even if the buyer is consistently getting it from the same dealer.
“You could be getting it from the same source, but that source could be getting it from somewhere else, so it’s important to test every time,” she said.
McNeil said while it’s important to raise awareness of this issue in the community at large, it’s especially important to raise awareness of the issue on college campuses.
During her undergrad experience at UNM, she said, “there was a lot of talk about purchasing stimulant drugs illicitly to help people focus or stay up and study.”
“They could also be benefiting from these testing strips, too,” she said.
In April, the Biden-Harris administration removed federal funding restrictions to allow grantees such as state and local health departments, state substance abuse agencies and community-based organizations and health systems the flexibility to use grant dollars for fentanyl testing strips.
The group hopes to receive funding from the New Mexico Department of Health soon so they can broaden their efforts, which include preventive educational presentations in addition to distributing testing strips.
“We’re expecting to do a lot more going forward,” Bachyrycz said. “It’s really important for us to educate people about the risk of addiction and exposure. We want to educate people before they even try the drug.”
To can learn more about obtaining test strips or the group’s educational presentations contact them at unmosud@gmail.com.
