Pubdate: Fri, 14 Jul 2006
Source: Centre Daily Times (PA)
Copyright: 2006 Nittany Printing and Publishing Co., Inc.
Contact:  http://www.centredaily.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/74
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)

OVERDOSES ARE OUR TRAGEDY; HELP IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY

PEOPLE ARE dying from drug overdoses. That news has become so common 
that the reports tend to fade into the background for some people. It 
becomes wallpaper, just the tragedy of "other" people.

It's unfortunate that anyone would become so calloused that they 
would have no empathy for the deaths of people. And these aren't 
strangers; these victims represent a cross section of the people who 
live in Luzerne County. Yes, some might be transients, but many 
others are longtime residents who have jobs, homes and families. They 
are our neighbors; they are part of our community.

In Freeland, a 25-year-old man died Wednesday from what is believed 
to be a drug overdose. A heroin overdose is suspected by Luzerne 
County Coroner Dr. John Consalvo. It will take time for Consalvo to 
determine the cause of Wednesday's death and others recently, but it 
is feared the recent wave of deaths locally is related to a deadly 
mix of heroin and fentanyl - a narcotic painkiller. The mix has been 
causing drug overdose deaths across the country.

It's sadder still if some people feel these victims got what they 
deserved. If six people died in the past month for others reason - 
pool drowning, dog bite, fireworks - people would care. But because 
drugs are illegal, these victims are painted with the broad brush of disrepute.

For whatever reason, these victims, these neighbors of ours, have 
become addicts, caught in a tragic spiral. And because the drug 
epidemic has been ongoing for years and seems to be claiming more 
people right now, it cries for more attention.

The drug and alcohol institute proposed for Luzerne County Community 
College seems like the right measure of effort. A proposed 
feasibility study for the institute was announced Tuesday by Luzerne 
County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak. The people of Luzerne County need 
to know more about the institute and how it will fit into LCCC's 
mission before any endorsement, but there might be value in 
Skrepenak's claim that the area needs a central location to collect 
and dispense the latest research on treatment, prevention and usage. 
Commissioners will vote on conducting the $5,000 study at next week's 
commissioner meeting.

Will this institute focus on addiction, prevention, enforcement 
and/or treatment? The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration, for example, emphasizes education, particularly on 
the street, to prevent deaths from the heroin/fentanyl mix.

It's clear we need to do more if we're going to find the answers. And 
we won't prevent our neighbors from dying as long as we see them as 
the tragedy of someone else.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman