Doctor bolsters Ill. harm reduction efforts
Tragedy led Dr. Tamara Olt on a mission that has saved hundreds of lives in central Illinois.
Almost 12 years ago, the obstetrician and gynecologist lost her 16-year-old son, Josh, to an opioid overdose. The cause of death was shocking because Olt didn’t know he was doing drugs.
As a physician, Olt knew about naloxone, the antidote to opioid overdose, and that it could have saved his life. But at that time, it was not readily available in central Illinois. Almost immediately after her son’s death, Olt began working to get it into the hands of emergency responders and the public.
“Right away when he died and we asked for donations in lieu of flowers, it was to start something for drug awareness and harm reduction,” said Olt. “I’m a fixer, and you know death is the one thing you can’t fix, you can’t undo, you can’t make it better. I needed to understand why this happened and what I could do to make sure this didn’t happen to other people.”
Olt brought harm reduction to central Illinois through an organization bearing her son’s nickname, Jolt. It wasn’t easy at first, because most people didn’t know what harm reduction was. Many believed that the distribution of naloxone and syringes enabled drug users when what they needed was “tough love.”
Organizers worked to educate the public about the fact that substance use disorder is not a weakness, but an illness that is difficult to cure, and that victims should be supported and treated with respect.
Today, the work Jolt Harm Reduction does goes far beyond the distribution of syringes and naloxone. It addresses issues of homelessness and hunger, and it helps people find medical care. Though the program is still funded by donations, government grants are helping it grow.
Olt also is executive director of GRASP Broken No More.
“GRASP stands for Grief Recovery after Substance Passing. It’s a peer-led international nonprofit that helps people who have lost someone from substance use,” she said. “The Broken No More part of it is drug policy and advocacy, focusing on evidence-based policies and strategies to help reduce the harm that comes from drug policies.”
For her work, Olt has been named Illinois’ 2024 USA TODAY Woman of the Year honoree.
Question: Who paved the way for you?
Answer: The people that paved the way are the people who have been doing harm reduction for years, since the HIV crisis when they were handing out clean syringes to people to help prevent the transmission of HIV. These programs didn’t exist. These people were pioneers, the first to say, let’s do this. There was no funding for this. They did it out of the back of their cars, their homes, on the streets, before harm reduction was really a word.
What is your proudest moment? Do you have a lowest?
My proudest moment was the day Jolt Harm Reduction finally opened on Adams Street, in the spring of 2018. My lowest day was the day I found out my son died, April 29, 2012.
What is your definition of courage?
Having the strength to fight for a cause, a mission you believe in and know is an absolute good in spite of adversity, nay-sayers and dealing with personal grief and loss.
Is there a guiding principle or mantra you tell yourself ?
Yes, that every life has value and no one is disposable.
How do you overcome adversity? By never giving up, always fighting for what I know is right. And not accepting no for an answer.
What advice would you give your younger self ?
To stop and smell the roses, to appreciate the little moments in life, and mostly that life is not about the destination, it’s about the journey.