With new data, county takes on opioid crisis
The opioid crisis isn’t just a health problem.
It isn’t just a crime problem.
It’s a community problem.
That’s according to Karen Bennett, director of Human Services in Greene County, and that’s the reason the county is officially expanding its overdose task force, modeling it after the successful coalition in the neighboring Washington County.
With the help of the University of Pittsburgh’s Overdose Prevention Research Program, the task force is moving beyond its current membership of a few elected officials, law enforcement and health professionals, to include community members with a variety of experiences.
“The purpose was kind of to collect data about our overdose deaths (in the county) and try to figure out a strategy to prevent our overdose deaths,” Bennett said.
According to the official list of invitees, 42 people were invited to the new task force’s first meeting, which was held recently. Included are professionals from academia, religious stakeholders and the “recovering community,” Bennett said.
One of the key additions, Bennett said, is the new Greene County coroner, Gene Rush. Bennett said Rush’s cooperation and transparency will be imperative to the success of the new task force.
“The position (of coroner) is one of the key stakeholders,” she said. “He is working with families.”
Rush said he is looking forward to being a part of the group and providing his expertise.
“I’m going to be the statistical guy, obtaining and providing information on types of drug deaths and drugs involved,” Rush said.
It was also reported that last year’s number of overdose deaths, listed on a report from former county coroner Greg Rohanna as “acute mixed drug toxicity,” was significantly lower than in previous years. Rush said the report indicates that the number of deaths dropped from 20 in 2016 to 13 in 2017, with drugs involved including heroin, fentanyl, codeine, cocaine and others.
While it could be a result of year-to-year fluctuation and a small sample size, Rush was unable to speculate as to why the drop occurred.
“That’s strictly from previous records,” he said. “There’s no way of knowing the reason for the drop.”
One of the purposes of the task force is to privately analyze this data and take in the perspectives of multiple interest groups. Bennett said meetings will be held with the understanding of complete confidentiality.
“It’s very important that when we talk about data, it remains in that group and in the context of that discussion,” said Bennett. “The opioid task force will release that data in the way they decide to share that information.”
Bennett said they are relying on the expertise of the University of Pittsburgh’s research unit. The Overdose Prevention Program has facilitated task forces like these with success across the state. Washington County’s program has achieved remarkable progress in a short amount of time, said Bennett, “but it takes all the key people involved to get where you need to go.”
That’s why, she said, the task force is becoming community-based.
Collaborating with stakeholders across the community will help the county focus its efforts, Bennett said. For example, the religious community will have its own goals, but now everyone can work together to achieve them. No one will be “isolated,” Bennett said.
“This thing is a community problem, and the strategies that you use have to address all aspects of the community,” she added. “It takes all of the people to help or to volunteer.”