It’s been six weeks and in some ways, reporter Ann Wishart and I believe we have barely exposed the tip of an iceberg with a depth and breadth so far reaching, it truly is hard to see where it ends.
However, as Geauga County Board of Mental Health and Recovery Services Director Jim Adams said, “I think it depends on what part of the picture we’re looking at.”
“The statistics for heroin overdoses, for example, are leveling off,” he said, referring to the latest statistics from the Ohio Department of Health. “And the number of prescribed medications have dropped substantially over the last year or two.”
The concern, however, is when looking at statistics for individuals who have died by opioid overdose — and fentanyl and carfentanyl — those continue to increase, he said.
“They have found it is being added to other drugs, unexpectedly,” Adams said. “They find it in marijuana as an example. It’s found its way into the drug economy and I think that’s the next issue we have to face. There’s always another drug.”
Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand said it appears overdose deaths have slowed down a bit.
“In my opinion, the answer is treatment. We desperately need more treatment centers because the recovery does not happen overnight,” he said. “It takes months and years to keep these people clean. These are not bad people, they are people that make bad choices and because of those decisions, their brain chemistry has been changed and they are now addicts.
“It will be a struggle for them the rest of their lives. I do feel that the doctors are more aware of the fact that over-prescribing can lead to the addiction and the public is also more aware. We can only hope that it will slow, but time will tell.”
Adams said there are a few signs of hope the county will overcome this epidemic in time.
“Number one, the level and amount of treatment available is increasing all the time,” he said. “I think one of the things that happened in this epidemic is when people wanted to get help, it wasn’t readily available and I think that’s changing. Once people are ready to get help, they need to get help then. We can’t wait three weeks to wait for them to get a bed. I think we’ve worked really hard to increase that availability to people … also prevention and education efforts in the last five or six years.”
Prescription medications aren’t as available on the streets as they used to be either, Adams pointed out, adding instead of 30-day prescriptions, many are now only seven-day prescriptions.
The county has also been implementing a lot more educational programs, particularly geared toward adults and seniors, about not holding onto old medications and proper ways to dispose of them, Adams said.
“I think there is a lot of things going on like the prescription drug take back (program), getting the old drugs and drugs not being used out of the homes,” Hildenbrand added. “Education of the public including the Amish on the dangers of over-using prescription drugs. Education in the jail about where to get help. We have partnered with United Way (Services of Geauga County) to help get these people back on their feet after leaving jail. (We are) working with (University Hospitals Geauga Medical Center) with Narcan and education.”
Adams said a lot of said education has been effective.
“So I think people are more aware of how they can help mediate the epidemic,” he said, adding the way addiction is being treated has changed over the years.
“They’ve just announced there’s a new injectable buprenorphine that’s been released,” Adams said. “I think the list of options are better and people respond to different treatments differently. One treatment does not cure everybody, despite what we’d like to believe or see. I think all of those things are helping to relieve some of the level of the epidemic now.”
However, one of the challenges has been and continues to be having enough professionals trained in the field of addiction and mental health readily available in the county.
“So we are working with high schools and colleges to educate young adults on what they can do to help this epidemic and to encourage them to look at the field of mental health and substance abuse treatment as a career,” he said.
Geauga County has the Copeline (440-285-5665), a crisis line people can call to get help.
“Whether for substance abuse or mental health, they will direct you to care on a 24-hour-a-day basis,” Adams said. “When I talk about this subject (addiction) to most community groups, I think one of the things people don’t realize is the wide array of services that are available. I think we can help people wherever they are in their addiction cycle. If people are concerned about that or afraid to come in, I think it’s reassuring to know we can help them no matter where they are in the process.”
Adams said the men’s recovery house in Chardon has been a success and the Red Tulip housing project in the works for a recovery house for women in Claridon Township is also a sign of progress.
“It’s still building,” he said. “And the need will be there for a while.”
Residential Housing
Lake County has two residential facilities for addicts in recovery – Oak House for women and Lake House for men, as well as and the recovery house for men in Chardon, said Melanie Blasko, CEO of Lake-Geauga Recovery Centers.
Lake County has Neveah Ridge in Mentor, which has six rooms for pregnant women in primary treatment so their babies are not born addicted, she said, adding children under the age of 3 can stay at NR with their moms.
Blasko said LGRC has studied the possibility of setting up a facility for men where their toddlers can stay with them, too, if they can get the sponsors.
In the past, recovery facilities were limited to 16 beds because they were grouped in with institutions for mental defectives, Blasko said.
Legislation is changing that limit for drug users\alcoholics. The center generally follows local zoning that only allows four or five unrelated individuals to live in the same house, she said, adding the center has land in Geauga County where they want to build a 16-bed facility for men, since demand is so high.
They are hoping to build two more in Lake County as well as enlarge the Lake House, Blasko said.
“We are using every dollar we receive from Geauga County to spend on residents from Geauga County,” she said.
The Red Tulip House in Claridon Township will be a good next step for female recovering drug addicts when they are ready to leave one of the treatment facilities, Blasko said.
“Diane Kellogg has done an exceptional job of fundraising for the nonprofit. That’s all right from her heart,” she said. “People completing treatment shouldn’t go home. The Red Tulip House will help with the overflow.”
Reporter Ann Wishart contributed to this article.
