A practical and compassionate guide to understanding and addressing the opioid crisis.The opioid crisis in the United States continues to kill Americans at an alarming rate. Over the past two decades, annual overdose deaths have skyrocketed, growing from roughly 20,000 per year to over 100,000 per year. In this deeply informed and compassionate guide, Peter Canning shares the devastating realities of the opioid crisis from the perspective of a seasoned paramedic an...

A devastating, empathetic look at the opioid epidemic in the United States, through the eyes of a paramedic on the front lines.[I] set my cardiac monitor down by the young man's head. He is lifeless, his face white with a blue tinge. I apply the defibrillator pads to his hairless chest . . . A week from today, after the young man's brain shows no signs of electrical activity, the medical staff will take the breathing tube out, and with his family gathered by hi...

When Peter Canning started work as a paramedic on the streets of Hartford, Connecticut, twenty-five years ago, he believed drug users were victims only of their own character flaws. Although he took care of them, he did not care for them. But as the overdoses escalated, Canning began asking his patients how they had gotten started on their perilous journeys. And while no two tales were the same, their heartrending similarities changed Canning's view and moved him to educate himself about t...

In this issue of Veterinary Clinics: Small Animal Practice, guest editors Drs. Bailey Brame and Peter Canning bring their considerable expertise to the topic of Small Animal Dermatology. Top experts discuss areas of veterinary dermatology with recent developments in treatment or diagnosis, as well as emerging diseases, pathogens which are on the rise in North America, and clinical entities that are being seen more often. Articles cover key topics of interest to both general practitioners a...