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HAMILTON COUNTY, Ind. (WTHR) – Opioid use has increased at an alarming rate in Hamilton County.
And now, there is a new team on the street to help people get treatment.
Opioid Rapid Response Teams will visit the homes of those affected by an overdose. The goal? Reduce stigma and save lives
"It's still rated as one of the best places to live in the country.People think you know a happy place without problems," said Ryan Herron, of Westfield's fire department. "Unfortunately, like most communities across the country, we are experiencing the same epidemic here as anywhere else."
This is why new rapid response teams will take steps to get help from drug addicts after an overdose.
The Carmel and Westfield teams were deployed Monday, with a $ 50,000 grant for each community in the Indiana Mental Health and Addictions Division.
Teams consist of three people: a qualified firefighter, a police officer and a peer recovery counselor, who will go directly to the victim within 48 to 72 hours of an overdose.
During this wellness check, they will propose treatment options and try to reduce barriers to recovery.
"It's usually when people are still feeling this desperation and they're still at their lowest," said Ann Skinner, a peer-rescuer from Fishers, who knows this feeling.
She battled addiction until her recovery in 2001. But that only happened after a friend asked for help.
She says that this program can reach people faster.
"If I had asked someone to know about my different choices and options, I would have been really grateful for that.It's just a great platform to be able to help more people." "said Skinner.
"We hope to be able to offer this type of secure space to people – we can say that these programs are available – it's ok to reach out," said Herron.
This is a serious need in Hamilton County, where coroner's data show a steady increase in the number of opioid-related deaths over the past five years:
- 2014 – 18
- 2015 – 21
- 2016 – 26
- 2017 – 36
- 2018 – 40
Today, rapid response teams, whose job is to protect the public, hope to save even more lives.
This program will expand to the entire county by this summer for two years.
This is thanks to a $ 490,343 federal grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance.
Other communities have similar efforts under way, including Tippecanoe and Boone counties, which have put in place rapid response teams by the end of last year.
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