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Photo credit: Opioid Industry Documents Archive

The Opioid Industry Documents archive is an online archival database that collects and manages documents related to the opioid epidemic so researchers, physicians, community stakeholders and the general public can track the origins of the epidemic in the hopes of creating sustainable solutions to one day end abusive opioid use. The archive is a collaborative endeavor between the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and John Hopkins University and is hosted by the UCSF Library. The mission of the archive is “To collect, organize, preserve, and make freely accessible documents from opioid industry litigation to enable multiple audiences to explore and investigate information which shines a light on the opioid crisis.” [Opioid Industry Documents, n.d.]

The archive began in March 2021 and contains over a million documents that “have been publicly released through state and federal investigations, settlement agreements, and other proceedings…” [Opioid Industry Documents, n.d.] The documents provide insight into the business practices and internal memos of pharmaceutical companies that exploited the potency of their opioid medications. The document types include, “emails, memos, presentations, sales reports, budgets, audit reports, Drug Enforcement Administration briefings…” and much more. [Opioid Industry Documents, n.d.]

Since the archive houses a wide range of documents, searching for a specific document or piece of information may seem daunting. The archive has a helpful ‘How to Search the OIDA’ PDF that provides examples and tips on how to best use their search feature. You can narrow search results by author, title, type of prescription drug, date and other search terms. The archive also has specific collections such as their ‘Popular Opioids documents’, ‘Kentucky Opioid Litigation Documents’ and the ‘Washington Post Opioid’ collections. 

Photo by EKATERINA BOLOVTSOVA via Pexels.com

Recently the Opioid Industry Documents archive received approximately 1.4 million documents as part of the settlement agreement by the pharmaceutical company Mallinckrodt, which was a leader in manufacturing the opioid epidemic:  

“While most Americans may have never heard of Mallinckrodt, the Drug Enforcement Administration called the company in 2010 “the kingpin within the drug cartel” of legitimate companies driving the opioid epidemic. Between 2006 and 2014, Mallinckrodt accounted for 27 percent of the opioid market compared with 18 percent of Purdue Pharma, measured by the potency of the pills they produced, according to an analysis by The Post.”

[Kornfield, Higham & Rich, 2022]

The ‘Mallinckrodt Litigation Documents’ reveal the company’s outreach and promotional strategies, the names of medical professionals who purchased large quantities of the company’s drug supply, efforts to convince the health-care industry of the safety of their products and video depositions of the company’s top executives. The Washington Post reported that some of the key findings of the files include “Company managers pressured sales representatives to find doctors who would write large numbers of prescriptions and then targeted them for continued business…Mallinckrodt paid top prescribers thousands of dollars to extol the virtues of the company’s drugs to fellow doctors at “speaker programs” held at fine restaurants and resorts…[and] Mallinckrodt played a key role in an industry-wide effort to convince the health-care industry that addiction was rare among opioid users and marketed its drugs to specific segments of society…” [Kornfield, Higham & Rich, 2022] These findings are similar to other pharmaceutical companies’ tactics that purposefully mislead the health care community and the general public about the addictiveness of their products. 

The Opioid Industry Documents archive is free to access. If you are a researcher studying the opioid epidemic, someone impacted by the crisis or have a general interest in learning more about the origins of the crisis, then explore the archival database. If you need assistance conducting archival searches, the staff at Himmelfarb Library are here to assist you! Please contact the Reference department at (202) 994-2850 or by email at himmelfarb@gwu.edu. 

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In an effort to remain accountable to communities who have been negatively impacted by past and present medical injustices, the staff at Himmelfarb Library is committed to the work of maintaining an anti-discriminatory practice. We will uplift and highlight diverse stories throughout the year, and not shy away from difficult conversations necessary for health sciences education. To help fulfill this mission,  today's post will highlight the Native Health Database.

The Native Health Database is an online collection that organizes and shares information related to the health and health care of American Indians, Alaska Natives and Canadian First Nations. The Native Health Database  “...provides information for the benefit, use, and education of organizations and individuals with an interest in health-related issues, programs and initiatives regarding North American Indigenous peoples.” 

Created in the 1990s, the Native Health Database is the final result of the merging of two different Native American health care collections, the Native Health History Database and the Native Health Research Database. When Dr. William W. Schottstaedt donated over 3,000 documents to the University of New Mexico’s Health Sciences Library and Informatics Center, the resources were compiled into the Native Health History Database. The historical documents  dated from 1672 to 1966 and were collected into a single database that focused on the history of health and healthcare of Native American people. 

The Native Health Research Database began in 1997 when the United States Indian Health Service contracted with The Health Sciences Library and Informatics Center to create a resource that covered the current landscape of Native American health. These two databases merged into the Native Health Database in 2007,  and recently transitioned to the Mukurtu CMS platform with the goal of giving Native American groups and individuals better control and access to the content that’s available for viewing and sharing. 

The Native Health Database does not require users to create an account to browse or access items in the collection, but registered users can save items to their personal collection for later review and registration is free. 

When searching for a resource, you can refine your search by the date, tribal or group affiliation, subject, resource type or by other parameters. Resource types include, but are not limited to, journal articles, editorials, guidelines and monographs. While the full resource  is not stored on the database,  the individual database records provide  information to guide you to the manuscript or document elsewhere.

 You may use the item’s identifier to search for the resource through an external link such as PubMed Central. If you’re interested in the physical copy of the resource, you can contact the Native Health Database administrator at hsc-nhd@salud.unm.edu to request access to the resource. Please note these requests are granted on a case-by-case basis. 

The Native Health Database is an excellent resource for  learning about the historical and current needs of Native American communities. With documents ranging from the late 1600s to now, the database covers a broad spectrum of topics and time periods. The content available through the Native Health Database is meant to serve as a springboard for individuals as they explore the specific topics and needs that directly impact Native American groups. By increasing their level of understanding of Native American health, medical professionals and researchers will have the ability to better address the needs of their patients or undertake research opportunities that are respectful of Native American people and communities. 

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Himmelfarb Library is excited to introduce the database Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DiTA)! DiTA indexes primary studies and systematic reviews evaluating diagnostic tests used by physical therapists. It provides access to citation information and links to full-text.

DiTA offers a robust search feature, including filters for body part and pathology. There is also a  “Browse” option in their Evidence in your inbox email. Sign up, and you’ll be sent the newest additions to the DiTA database. Speaking of additions, DiTA provides regular updates via their blog when new articles are added.

You can access DiTA in our Databases, under the Health Sciences/Allied Health section. If you have any questions, you can always reach out to us at himmelfarb@gwu.edu.

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