Public Forumon Opioids

ONEIDA, N.Y. » As the heroin and opioid epidemic has gripped communities throughout the nation, the greater Oneida area has not been spared. But how great is the problem and what can be done about it?

Local experts in law-enforcement, the law, health, addiction, rehabilitation and recovery will converge on Oneida Public Library on Tuesday, June 19, at 7 p.m. for a Public Forum on Opioids that will help define the local opioid problem. Discussion panel members will provide insight into the causes and remedies for addiction, the role of law-enforcement in prevention and the ways and means the public can help combat the epidemic. The discussion will open up to the audience for questions and comments.

“Many people in this community are touched by substance use disorders,” said Lauren P. Davie, coordinator of the Central Region Addiction Resource Center Project, a cosponsor of the forum. “Having a community-wide conversation like this public forum is an important step in educating the community about what is happening locally and what services are available, while reducing the stigma associated with addiction. We need to continue to work collaboratively to figure out how we can help those in need.”

The Public Forum will feature Eric Faisst, public health director in the Madison County

Department of Health; Susan L. Jenkins, executive director of BRiDGES/ Madison County Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse; Dennis K. McDermott, Madison County Court judge, Family Court judge and head of the Madison County Family Treatment Program; Ofrona Reid, M.D., Oneida Healthcare’s vice president of medical affairs and chief medical officer; James Strail, program director at Liberty Resources’ Maxwell House, Oneida; and Paul Thompson, Oneida City Chief of Police.

The panel will be moderated by G. Richard Kinsella Jr., president of the OPL Board of Trusteeswho worked for over 40 years in a variety of government and not-for-profit agen- cies serving people and families with alcohol and drug problems. Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood will also be in attendance to share a county-wide perspective on enforcing drug laws and dealing with overdosed addicts.

Oneida Public Library, BRiDGES/Madison County Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse and the Central Region Addiction Resource Center are co-sponsoring the Public Forum.

“Whether it’s a police bust of yet another meth lab, an arrest for sales and possession of an illegal substance, a family member or friend addicted to prescription pain medications, or one more her- oin overdose case in the Oneida Healthcare Emergency Room,” said OPLAssistant Director TomMurray, “the symptoms of the heroin/opioid epidemic are everywhere and have impacted the community in one way or another. It’s more than time for every citizen in greater Oneida to face the problem and try to break the patterns of addiction.”

For more information on the Public Forum, stop by the Oneida Library, 220 Broad St. in Oneida, or call the Oneida Library at (315) 363-3050. For more information on local services for addiction recovery, contact Cindy McGinley of the Addiction Resource Center at (315) 697-3947.

“It’s more thantime for every citizen in greater Oneida to face the problemand try to break the patterns of addiction.”

— Tom Murray, OPL assistant director