{"id":14098,"date":"2025-11-10T15:47:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T20:47:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cooperhealth.org\/news\/?p=14098"},"modified":"2025-11-10T15:47:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T20:47:30","slug":"cooper-expands-nations-first-ems-buprenorphine-program-to-newark-and-paterson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cooperhealth.org\/news\/2025\/11\/cooper-expands-nations-first-ems-buprenorphine-program-to-newark-and-paterson\/","title":{"rendered":"Cooper Expands Nation\u2019s First EMS Buprenorphine Program to Newark and Paterson"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cooper\u2019s \u201cBupe FIRST\u201d team has partnered with University Hospital and St. Joseph\u2019s Health to launch and enhance EMS buprenorphine programs in North Jersey.<\/em><\/h2>\n

\"Cooper<\/p>\n

(CAMDEN, N.J.) \u2013 People who are revived from opioid-related overdose by emergency medical teams face dire odds. Historically, one in 10 who suffers an overdose dies within a year, making the interaction between overdose patients and the paramedics who treat them crucial. To better the odds for those who have suffered an overdose, Cooper University Health Care has expanded its first-in-the-nation Bupe FIRST program to two New Jersey health systems, University Hospital in Newark and St. Joseph\u2019s Health in Paterson.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat first interaction between a person who is suffering an overdose and EMS is a potent moment for intervention. It\u2019s often the first interaction with health care the patient has had in some time, and, through Bupe FIRST, the responding EMS team has a needed tool to treat a patient\u2019s underlying addiction, not only the overdose,\u201d said Gerard G. Carroll, MD, FAAEM, EMT-P, medical director of Cooper EMS. \u201cThe expansion of Bupe FIRST to University Hospital and St. Joseph\u2019s Health will translate to lives saved and improved outcomes for those affected by opioid use disorder in New Jersey.\u201d<\/p>\n

University Hospital now has seven paramedic units equipped and trained to administer buprenorphine (bupe). These units serve about 400,000 New Jersey residents across Newark, Orange, West Orange, and greater Essex County. Cooper will work with St. Joseph\u2019s Health, which had four paramedic units authorized to administer buprenorphine before this agreement, to develop a structured referral program to connect patients who receive buprenorphine in the field with long-term addiction care.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis expansion of Bupe FIRST to University Hospital and St. Joseph\u2019s Health is a great win in the battle against deaths from opioid overdoses,\u201d said Rachel Haroz, MD, FAACT, head of Cooper\u2019s Center for Healing. \u201cThe evidence is clear. Bupe FIRST saves lives and brings people who are most at risk of death from opioid use disorder into care. I hope to see similar programs in every EMS program in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Carroll and his EMS team at Cooper worked with Cooper\u2019s Center for Healing to create Bupe FIRST (Field Initiation of ReScue Treatment by EMS) in 2019 after recognizing that most of those who have suffered an overdose refuse transportation to a hospital. Bupe FIRST, for the first time in the country, equipped EMS teams with buprenorphine, commonly used as a medication for opioid use disorder (or MOUD), and trained them to administer it when appropriate, essentially starting long term addiction care in the field.<\/p>\n

Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist, working on the same receptors as fentanyl or other opioids, but with a ceiling on its analgesic effect. This means, when used properly, it can provide relief for withdrawal symptoms and opioid cravings and significantly reduce the risk for another overdose. Buprenorphine is a popular medication for long-term treatment of opioid use disorder.<\/p>\n

In a 2022 study published in Annals of Emergency Medicine<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Cooper researchers detailed the program\u2019s success, showing that overdose patients who interacted with an EMS team equipped with buprenorphine report fewer withdrawal symptoms and are five times as likely to have engaged in addiction treatment in the following 30 days than those who did not.<\/p>\n

While University Hospital and St. Joseph\u2019s Health are the first partners in Cooper\u2019s program, Bupe FIRST has become the model for similar programs\u00a0 in California, Delaware, Minnesota, Missouri, Washington and parts of Canada.<\/p>\n

About Cooper University Health Care\u2019s Center for Healing<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Cooper Center for Healing, a State of New Jersey-designated Center of Excellence for substance-use disorders, is an integrated program that provides innovative, low-barrier, evidence-based, and compassionate care for patients with substance use disorders (SUD), pain, trauma, and psychiatric disorders. The center\u2019s medical specialists in addiction medicine, toxicology, emergency medicine, emergency medical services, internal medicine, family medicine, and psychiatry provide interdisciplinary care in hospital, ambulatory, and community settings.<\/p>\n

Among the wide range of services, the Center provides:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n