Discussion set on addiction, mental health

PERKASIE >> A virtual panel discussion on mental health and addiction’s impact on the Perkasie community is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 13.

The program hosted by Penn Foundation will be similar to well-received ones held at in-person meetings in the past, Mayor John Hollenbach said at the March 15 Perkasie Borough Council meeting.

Mental health and addiction issues have spiked during the pandemic, he said.

“While Covid has taken center stage this past year, mental health and addiction issues are still a big issue and they’ve actually been exacerbated because of the pandemic, so the event is going to focus on what people can do to preserve their health and the health of their loved ones and neighbors during this challenging time,” Jennifer Smith, Penn Foundation’s communications coordinator, said in a telephone interview.

“Over 81,000 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States in the 12 months ending in May 2020, the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in a 12-month period, according to recent provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),” Smith wrote in an email.

While overdose deaths were already increasing in the months leading up to the pandemic, the latest numbers suggest an acceleration, she said.

“We’ve had problems in the community normally with drugs and mental health issues, but it’s been greatly exacerbated by the current situation,” Perkasie Borough Council Public Safety Committee Chair Scott Bomboy said at council’s March 1 meeting during discussion of the April 13 presentation.

Along with raising awareness of the issues, the presentation gives information on resources for people to get help, he said.

Bomboy was the person that originally reached out to Penn Foundation to ask to have the presentation put together, Deb Ryan, Penn Foundation’s director of community outreach, said.

Hollenbach will make opening comments during the presentation, she said.

Other speakers will be Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub; Bucks County Behavioral Health Administrator Donna Duffy-Bell; Gordon Hornig, a Penn Foundation addiction professional; Perkasie Borough Police Chief Robert Schurr; and Pastor Jennifer Phelps of Trinity Lutheran Church in Perkasie.

While the focus will be on the Perkasie area, the presentation will also include information of interest to persons in other areas, Ryan said.

Registration is available at tinyurl.com/Perkasiecommunity.

Information is available by contacting Ryan at 215453-5165 or dryan@pennfoundation.org.

The presentation is made possible by support from the Pennridge Community Recovery Fund, Pennridge Ministerium and Today, Inc.