Facing Fentanyl with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

We are excited to share Tyler Lindskoog’s experience below, funded by Charlie’s Angels fund.

From September 5th to October 1st, 2023, I spent 4 weeks with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) working alongside their Chief Data Officer and Ohio State University College of Public Health Adjunct Professor, Dr. Naomi Adaniya. My role was to assist with the data-driven Operation Overdrive. Throughout my time with Dr. Adaniya I worked with the team leading fentanyl intervention in high risk cities across the US.

Given my public health training, my role in the team was to perform epidemiological data collection for high risk cities in the United States. Using this data, I constructed educational aides to facilitate with Operation Overdrive interventions in these cities. Becoming culturally competent was a fundamental part of my role. To prepare educational aides, I needed to understand the culture of the different regions and how best to communicate with my audience. During my time with DEA, I had a unique insight into the intersection of public health and law enforcement. Through this intersection I was able to contribute to the mission of improving global health by combating illicit drug trade via community level intervention. Overall, after completing this experience, I aim to continue to pursue a career at the intersection of federal public health and law enforcement to improve global health one community at a time.