Our Research

From emergency department screening to community outreach, the Sandelich Lab works to close the gap between a crisis moment and lasting recovery.

Our work spans the full arc of adolescent substance use, from the moment a young person arrives in the ED, through brief intervention and harm reduction, to the community supports that keep them well. We combine clinical research, implementation science, and direct community engagement to drive change at every step.

“The emergency department is not the end of the story. It’s where we have the chance to change it.”

Scroll down to explore our four core research areas.


Current Research Focus

  • The emergency department is often the first, and sometimes only, contact point for adolescents with substance use disorder. We develop, test, and implement screening tools and brief intervention protocols that are feasible in high-volume ED settings and acceptable to both adolescents and caregivers.

    →  Feasibility of ED-based substance use screening tools

    →  Adolescent and caregiver perceptions of screening in pediatric EDs

    →  Brief intervention design for adolescents in acute care settings

    →  Integration of screening into routine clinical workflows


  • Opioid overdose and withdrawal in adolescents represent a growing and underrecognized crisis. Our research examines acute opioid encounters in pediatric patients, prehospital response patterns, and the implementation of ED-initiated medication-assisted treatment including buprenorphine.

    →  Acute opioid overdose presentations in pediatric patients

    →  ED-initiated buprenorphine for adolescents with OUD

    →  Prehospital opioid encounters and EMS response

    →  Naloxone distribution and harm reduction in the ED

  • Social determinants of health profoundly shape who ends up in the emergency department and what happens next. We examine the intersection of social vulnerability, including poverty, geography, and adverse childhood experiences, with substance use and acute care outcomes in pediatric populations.

    →  Social vulnerability index and pediatric EMS behavioral health activations

    →  Adverse childhood experiences and emotional regulation in ED patients

    →  Geographic and socioeconomic disparities in opioid outcomes

    →  Dual diagnoses of mental health and substance use disorder in adolescents

  • What happens after discharge determines outcomes as much as what happens in the ED. Our work focuses on building warm handoffs, peer recovery navigation, and community linkage pathways that keep adolescents connected to care after they leave the emergency department.

    →  Peer recovery navigator programs in the ED

    →  Warm handoff protocols to outpatient and community providers

    →  Healthcare utilization patterns among adolescents with dual diagnoses

    →  Implementation science for care transition interventions

Read Our Publications

Browse the full list of peer-reviewed publications, book chapters, and research from the Sandelich Lab.