TOWN HALL MEETING PLANNED ON NATIONAL OPIOID CRISIS
A town hall meeting is planned in Brenham to address a growing nationwide problem. The Brazos Valley Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse will hold a town hall meeting on Thursday, April 26th from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Blinn College Student Center conference room. The meeting will discuss the national opioid crisis and its effect on the Brazos Valley. The panel for the town hall meeting will include experts from health care, pharmacology, law enforcement, and addiction counseling. The meeting will be moderated by Bill Roberts with BVCASA.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, there were 1,375 opioid-related overdose deaths in Texas in 2016. Since 2010, the number of heroin-related deaths steadily increased from 260 to 530 deaths, and deaths attributed to synthetic opioids (mainly fentanyl) rose from 156 to 250. The number of deaths in Texas related to opioid abuse may be artificially low because not every death receives an autopsy, often the only definitive way to determine the cause of death.
The town hall meeting will also provide hands-on training on how to administer Narcan which can be used to return normal body functions to an opioid overdose victim in a matter of minutes. For more information about the town hall meeting call 979-846-3560.
There is no opioid crisis. There is a breakdown in morality crisis.
You have stated the real problem in our society the breakdown in morality. Throw in excuse making, believing in what one would like to believe rather than the truth, and you cover all out societal issues. Over and over we learn of doctors who write scripts for those wanting them w/o following good protocol. Elvis, Rush, to name a few. Then there are the ‘pill mill’ pharmacies who sell anything and everything. But the biggest issue are the local dealers found all over this country. As the problems are mostly related to artificial opiates, you can bet most were bought from a street dealer.
I agreed with this statement DERR KLUGE. There is no more an opioid crisis than any other drug that can be abused.
On the flip side to that … there are SO many people that take it responsibly as a last resort to chronic pain of all sorts that are so hard to live with. I do believe these patients need to be monitored on a regular basis because (as so many other RX drugs) they can become addictive and hard on the organs of the body. You have to use your common sense and be under a Dr.s care.
If people WANT to abuse drugs they are going to get want they want and do it anyway. SAD!
I agree with you Derr, grg, and also retired. The breakdown in morality, fathers not being around for their children, using excuses instead of accountability contributes greatly. We have a porous southern border where heroin flows in. Like was stated in a previous comment, we have dealers on many street corners lining their pockets while lives are being ruined and lost. There needs to be accountability for everyone involved in this cycle. Crack down and punish pharmaceutical pill mills, the dealers, and the doctor’s who hand out pain scripts when it isn’t necessary and doesn’t monitor the patient. Also, don’t handle the addict with kid gloves. Be tough on them so that they will hopefully change their lives. Addiction is a very strong thing to battle. I have a very painful autoimmune disease called Rheumatoid arthritis. It is debilitating and causes chronic pain. I have been treated conservatively with mild pain pills and surgical interventions thus far. There is NO CURE at this time. One day I am going to need the more powerful pain pills. It would be horrible if they weren’t available at that time because there was no crackdown on those who are helping to cause this crisis. God bless America and her people.