Experiences of Illicit Drug Overdose: An Ethnographic Study of Emergency Hospital Attendances

Abstract

To date there are few available data relating to drug users' views and experiences of illicit drug overdose. This paper provides in-depth information relating to the experience of overdose that might help to inform and improve prevention of the problem and responses to it. Research was conducted in five hospitals in two Scottish cities during 1997 and 1998. Data were collected from (i) semistructured interviews with 74 drug users who had overdosed in the previous 48 hours and (ii) fieldnotes written during non-participant observation in the hospital setting. Analysis was undertaken using grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) and was assisted by the computer software package WinmaxPro. Issues considered relate to the overdose incident; subsequent recovery; treatment received; and behavior in the hospital setting. The findings are discussed and some implications for policy and practice are considered.