September 24, 2025
Construction workers face some of the highest opioid dependency risks in the U.S. workforce, and Dr. Nzinga Harrison, Eleanor Health’s Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer, wrote directly for Construction Superintendent readers this fall to explain why. Her piece lays out seven concrete steps toward construction worker overdose prevention, aimed at keeping an injury prescription from turning into opioid dependency in the first place.
“The elevated risk in construction isn’t about personal weakness; it’s about the physical, high-risk nature of the work.”
— Dr. Nzinga Harrison, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer, Eleanor Health
Construction workers make up just 7% of the U.S. workforce but account for 15% of workplace overdose deaths, a gap Harrison treats as a leadership problem rather than a personal one. Her steps run from the practical, rotating crews through high strain tasks, pushing for real recovery time before rushing someone back to work, encouraging non-opioid pain management options, to the cultural, talking openly about mental health benefits and shutting down stigma during daily safety talks.
The throughline across all seven is trust. Superintendents already have the relationship with their crew that no HR policy can replicate, which puts them in the best position to notice an opioid problem early and make it safe to ask for help before it becomes a crisis.
She closes with a simple reframe: protecting a crew from opioid misuse isn’t separate from protecting them on the job, it’s the same job.
Eleanor Health works with employers building this exact kind of workplace support system. [Learn more about our approach to workplace substance use support →]
Read the full article at Construction Superintendent →
About Eleanor Health
Media Contact: marketing@eleanorhealth.com
Eleanor Health delivers comprehensive, evidence-based care for individuals affected by substance use disorder, alcohol use disorder, and mental health conditions. With a whole-person, trauma-informed approach, Eleanor Health is committed to improving the lives of its members, their families, and their communities.
