A Path to Fentanyl Reduction

America’s fentanyl crisis demands a response that is not only urgent, but outcome driven, and scalable. We help communities to move beyond awareness campaigns to deliver verified fentanyl and overdose prevention/response education with measurable engagement and real-time tracking.
Educate. Measure. Save Lives
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Background

America’s youth are facing a rapidly escalating fentanyl crisis that mirrors—and in some areas exceeds—a national public health emergency. Across the United States, pediatric fentanyl exposures have surged by 1,194% since 2015, while drug overdoses have become the third-leading cause of death among children and adolescents, claiming the equivalent of a high school classroom—22 young lives—every week.
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In 2021, more Americans were killed by fentanyl–laced pills and other addictive drugs than in all the wars the United States has fought since the end of World War II. In 2021, there were 108,000 fake–drug deaths, more than twice as many as automobile, gunshot, or suicide deaths
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While emergency responses (e.g., Narcan distribution, task forces) are underway, a critical gap remains:

‍There was no scalable, measurable system delivering coordinated fentanyl education across students, teachers, and families.

Until now.

Challenges

Reducing fentanyl use and accidental overdose in schools is a complex challenge with a critical gap. There is no scalable, measurable system to educate students, teachers, and families about the dangers associated with fentanyl.
  • No verification: School systems don't currently have any way of verifying that students have heard about the dangers of fentanyl.
  • No engagement tracking: Existing methods don't track student and family engagement with the coursework assigned to them.
  • No reinforcement: There's not currently any goal associated with fentanyl education other than checking the box.
  • No measurable ROI: No tracking metrics exist to compare the cost of youth healthcare costs from overdoses, incarcerations, or other societal impact
  • No measure of knowledge retention: Existing methods don’t assess pre- and post- knowledge levels to ascertain student recall of information
  • Limited collaborative content generation:  Most curriculums do not specifically aim to co-educate students, parents and teachers simultaneously
  • Not scaleable: Most available curriculums are dependent on in-person delivery formats and significant time commitments by teachers and staff

PATHS is the first digital metric based training tool for fentanyl education that’s ever been created. Its ability to train the masses is very impressive.

– Frank Sawyer, MHA

Solution

The Path to Fentanyl Reduction (PFR) is a comprehensive, technology-enabled prevention initiative designed to deliver customizable guided education, documented engagement, and measurable outcomes across entire school communities at both a state and national level supported by real-time dashboard analytics.
  • Students: Structured, age-appropriate digital learning modules focused on illicit opioid risk, overdose-management, decision-making, and prevention.
  • Teachers: Professional development, facilitation tools, implementation support and live dashboard monitoring of student/school/district quiz scores and student completion rates.
  • Parents: Reinforcement education, conversation guides, and community resource access
PFR is delivered through a secure digital care navigation platform (PATHS). enabling:
  • Step-by-step guided learning ("Paths")
  • Timestamped engagement tracking
  • Completion verification
  • Real-time analytics dashboards
The platform operated within a HIPAA-compliant & SOC2-aligned infrastructure, ensuring:
  • Secure handling of participant data
  • Privacy-forward architecture
  • Audit-ready documentation
  • Quiz score results
  • Responsible stewardship of public funds

How it Works

1. School District Expresses Interest in Fentanyl Education
The journey begins when school leadership reaches out to prioritize student safety. We connect with your administration to assess your community's specific needs and introduce the core concepts of the PATHS curriculum.

2. Grant Assessment / Procurement
We work with state and local leadership to identify relevant federal grants based on the number of students, parents and teachers that need to be trained. We coordinate backend reporting with post assessment compliance.

3. Educators Onboarded to PATHS Platform
Our streamlined onboarding process equips teachers with the tools, resources, and confidence to navigate the platform effectively. We provide comprehensive, easy-to-follow support so your staff is fully prepared to lead these vital conversations.

4. Parents and Students Go Through Their Paths
‍Parents and students engage in different age-appropriate, interactive modules designed to build true awareness and changed behaviors. By completing their dedicated path, each gain the essential knowledge needed to navigate today's risks and make safe, informed choices.

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The Outcomes We Measure

The Path to Fentanyl Reduction (PFR) aims to complete the following objectives:
  • Increase Student Awareness and Risk Recognition: 85% or more of participating students should demonstrate improved knowledge of fentanyl risks (pre/post assessments)
  • Drive Documented Engagement Across Stakeholders: 80% or greater students of students should complete the coursework, and 70% or more of teachers and parents.
  • Equip Teachers and Parents with Overdose Recognition and Response Skills: 90% or more of participating teachers and parents should demonstrate an understanding of how to recognize the signs of an opioid overdose, as well as what naloxone (Narcan) is and when it should be used. 85% or greater increased confidence in responding to a suspected overdose situation due to standardized guidance on overdose response protocols aligned with local policy.
  • Reduce Risk Behavior Indicators Among Students: 25% or more reduction in self-reported intent to use illicit substances.
  • Strengthen School and Community Response Capacity: All participating schools will be equipped with standardized curriculum and reporting tools with 90% or more teacher implementation fidelity. Integration of overdose awareness and response education into ongoing school and family engagement pathways with 90% or more teacher implementation fidelity.
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Meet the Subject Matter Experts

Holly L. Geyer, M.D., is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic, dual board certified in Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine. She leads Mayo Clinic’s Opioid Stewardship Program in Arizona and serves as President of the Arizona Society of Addiction Medicine. A prolific researcher with over 200 publications, Dr. Geyer is a nationally recognized expert on addiction neurobiology and the author of Ending the Crisis: Mayo Clinic’s Guide to Opioid Addiction and Safe Opioid Use. She also advises the NFL Alumni Association on public health initiatives.

Allison J.

Huff, DHEd

Associate Professor of Family and Community Medicine, dedicated to transforming how we understand, and treat, opioid use and chronic pain.

Skip

Long

Grant Procurement, with 20 years of experience in federal and state funding. Managing over 100 million in budget assets.

Krystal M.

Renszel, D.O.

Internal and Hospital Medicine Specialist, dedicated to translating 14 years of medical expertise into uniform, actionable overdose response strategies for our youth.

Reducing Healthcare Utilization

State investment drives measurable, reportable outcomes across both public health and education systems.

We help you to quantify the impact to justify the investment. Use the calculator below to model projected cost savings. By entering your state’s total student population and associated adolescent healthcare utilization costs related to substance use, you can estimate the financial burden avoided through early education and prevention.

Built for accountability at the state level. Our secure, HIPAA- and SOC 2-compliant infrastructure provides real-time, auditable reporting—giving funders, policymakers, and education leaders full visibility into program performance, engagement, and outcomes.
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Conclusion

We must tie outcomes to education and training to make better use of federal and state dollars. This represents a next-generation approach—one that moves beyond awareness to deliver structured education that is measurable  leading to behavior change in and how to respond in times of crisis like an overdose.

Grounded in clinical expertise, supported by national subject matter leaders, and delivered through a secure, HIPAA-compliant and SOC 2–aligned infrastructure, this program provides a defensible, evidence-informed solution to one of the most pressing public health challenges facing our schools today.

This is not simply an education initiative—it is a measurable public health intervention designed to reduce risk, strengthen communities, and save lives.
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Key Takeaways

  • A Crisis Needs A Coordinated Response: Fentanyl exposure among Americca's youth has surged, making drug overdoses the third-leading cause of death among youth.
  • Expert-Led and Fiscally Accountable: Built by nationally recognized clinicians, the program gives funders real-time performance visibility — with downstream savings expected across healthcare, education, and public safety.
  • Grant Coordination Toolkit: Identify federal grants to meet the scope of work. Coordinate submissions and backend reporting with assessment
  • Reporting: Includes verified counts of students, teachers, and families trained; district-level compliance with fentanyl education mandates; depth of engagement and reinforcement over time; and early indicators of behavioral change and risk reduction.
  • The Solution: A structured digital program delivering age-appropriate learning for students, development tools for teachers, and guided resources for parents through a secure, HIPAA-compliant platform with real-time analytics.

PATHS.
Fully certified.

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