Raising Awareness: Heroin in our Community
In an interview last November with CBS This Morning, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine called heroin the “worst epidemic I’ve ever seen.”
The discussion, part of a follow-up on CBS News’ 60 Minutes segment on heroin in central Ohio (“Heroin in the Heartland,” airdate Nov. 1, 2015), focused on how the drug has invaded communities and changed the landscape of drug addiction.
“(It’s) so pervasive; it’s in every part of Ohio,” said DeWine. “The drug dealers are going where the money is, and that’s the suburbs. They’re also in the rural areas.”
According to that news report, heroin is spreading because the drug is cheap and feeds the addiction of those who first misused prescription painkillers (opioids).
Unfortunately, Westerville has not been spared from the evils of heroin abuse. Acting on the urgency of raising awareness and dispelling myths about heroin use, the Westerville Division of Police hosted its first community forum on the topic in early April.
WPD organized “Raising Awareness: Heroin in our Community” with multiple agencies, including the Ohio Attorney General’s office, ADAMH (Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Board of Franklin County), Westerville City Schools, Concord Counseling Services, Delaware-Morrow Mental Health & Recovery Services Board, Westerville Area Ministerial Association, Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce and Westerville Citizen Police Academy Alumni. The objectives of the summit focused on the effects of heroin addiction on families and the community, as well as treatment, prevention and intervention strategies for drug-related crises.
“As a community, we need to realize what we’re facing here,” said Joseph Morbitzer, Westerville Chief of Police, attributing the prevalence of heroin in central Ohio to the closure of pill mills in southern Ohio.
“We’ve done an excellent job with pill mills,” said Morbitzer. “Through strong partnerships in law enforcements, we’ve pretty much evaporated that market. However, to show you the strength of the Mexican drug cartels, when they saw that opening, they immediately flooded our market with heroin.”
One of the most concerning topics about access to the drug is its potency, which Morbitzer explains is coming primarily directly from Mexico.
“About four or five years ago, we were a fifth/sixth-cut city, meaning when heroin got to this region, it was cut five or six times so that when we got the product it was about 11-18 percent pure,” he said. “Today, we’re a one-two cut region. Unfortunately, this means heroin is coming in anywhere from 88-92 percent pure and, at times, mixed with things like fentanyl.”
Fentanyl is a highly addictive narcotic used to treat severe pain. It is 100 times more potent than heroin.
Its potency, in fact, is how the drug was named. The Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services agency defines heroin as a semisynthetic drug derived from morphine. Discovered in 1874, it was introduced commercially in 1898 by the Bayer company in Germany. The name heroin was coined from the German heroisch, meaning heroic and strong.
Combine heroin’s potency with a number of manufacturing uncertainties, and the risks can quickly become uncontrollable.
“It’s not what we used to think of heroin as an inner-city drug,” says Morbitzer. “It’s a designer fad drug now, and the problem is it’s mixed with a number of manufactured chemicals also, so it can be instantly fatal.”
In fact, the realities of heroin use are being seen in young and old, and middle-to-upper class and suburban users. The CBS report indicates heroin use has spiked more than 60 percent in the past decade alone. Westerville Fire Division Chief Brian Miller says medics are watching the issue closely.
“We have the ability to use naloxone, known as Narcan, a drug that has the potential to reverse drug overdoses,” said Miller. “It has a variety of medical uses, but Westerville medics are definitely tuned in to the fact that heroin overdoses are being seen in and around our community. If anyone suspects an unconscious person may have overdosed, they need to call 9-1-1 immediately.”
The timing of the community forum was important so that Westerville can develop a community-endorsed strategy to recognize and combat heroin use before it further infiltrates schools, homes and businesses.
“Understand we’re not talking about bad people, we’re talking about addicted people,” Morbitzer said. “When they use the same amount of heroin used in previous episodes, it can be an instant overdose.”
Four heroin-related deaths in the City of Westerville in the last five years are four too many, says Morbitzer. “It tears at your heart to see some of the parents who never had a clue.”
For more information on heroin prevention and treatment resources, please visit www.westerville.org/police.
Thank You, Westerville
On March 15, Westerville voters had a say in the future of their fire and emergency medical services (EMS), approving a 2.8-mill levy to address the Westerville Fire Division’s (WFD) operating and capital needs for at least the next six years.
Thank you for your commitment to helping WFD meet the demands of the changing face of the fire service. This funding allows WFD to maintain the service levels Westerville residents have come to know and expect:
- Maintain rapid response. In 2015, emergency response averaged just seconds over four minutes.
- Meet service demands of increased EMS calls. In Westerville and Blendon Township, calls grew 12 percent between 2008 and 2014. In 2015 alone, calls rose another 7 percent, marking an eight-year high.
- Meet increased demand for fire inspection services. In 2015, WFD again conducted nearly 2,500 commercial building inspections, a number we expect to continually rise as new business enters the community.
- Enhance disaster planning, preparation and training to meet resident feedback (2014 Community Survey).
- Address aged equipment and facilities. WFD will make critical replacements of some equipment in poor condition and begin needed repairs on some facilities.
