'We have to build hope': Summit County ramps up resources to prevent overdoses

The Summit County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board addiction treatment call line will be staffed 24/7 starting Thursday.

The news was shared at a virtual panel discussion Wednesday to mark Overdose Awareness Day in Summit County, which is recognized across the country.

Gov. Mike DeWine sanctioned the observance of Ohio Overdose Awareness Day in 2021. Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro and County Council also declared Aug. 31 a day of remembrance for the lives lost to overdose.

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Thursday's recognition included 235 people standing side-by-side along the pedestrian walkway on Akron's All-America Bridge to recognize the 235 people who died from drug overdoses in Summit County in 2021. Participants observed 235 seconds of silence. Distributions of the opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone — also known by the brand name Narcan — were also held throughout the county Thursday.

The Summit County Recovery Hub, a new recovery community organization, Summit County Public Health and the Summit County Opiate and Addiction Task Force partnered to support Overdose Awareness Day in Summit County.

“We want to take this day to not only pause to mourn but to remind people to spread the word of hope and to encourage people to seek treatment because we know it works. People get better,” said Greta Johnson, director of communications and assistant chief of staff for Shapiro.

Summit County ADM Board phone numbers

The ADM board already has a 24/7 hotline available for people in crisis, at 330-434-9144, but the agency’s addiction treatment line, 330-940-1133, will now also be available 24/7, said ADM Board Executive Director Aimee Wade.

Wade said that during regular business hours, people can get connected to treatment providers to find the soonest, closest appointment available. After hours, people will be connected to a live person who can “talk about access to detox and provide supports during those interim times until the treatment providers are reopened,” Wade said.

 “Treatment works. People recover. There is hope,” she said. “We have to build hope and resiliency in Summit County.”

The ADM Board is not a service provider itself, but it helps fund service providers offering both treatment and recovery.

Wade said the agency funds more than $12 million in prevention, treatment and recovery services for addiction for more than 16 provider agencies and programs across the county.

People can also call 2-1-1 if they don’t know who to call for help, including for access to food or job searches.

Overdose deaths in Summit County

According to Summit County Medical Examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler, the number of overdose deaths in Summit County so far in 2022 about matches the rate for the same time period in 2021: as of Aug. 28, there were 156 overdose deaths reported in 2022, compared to 157 in 2021.

But Kohler said that’s a 17% increase since 2020. She also said the deaths over the last several years have largely been caused by fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine.

Kohler said the most concerning number in the last few years is a rising number of Black female overdose deaths.

“We saw 11 deaths in 2020 and 13 deaths in 2021 for this group, and although those numbers may sound small, the increase represents an 18% increase, which is an alarming number,” she said.

Kohler said that so far this year, there have been nine Black women who have died of overdoses, meaning “we're on track to either equal or exceed the numbers we've seen in previous years.”

Wade said there need to be more conversations in the Black community to raise awareness about overdoses.

“The faces of overdose since we spiked in 2016 here in Summit County is changing. The substances of use is changing, and we really need to have that conversation,” she said. “It hasn't historically been a conversation within the Black community in regards to overdose and this epidemic that we've experienced, but it's critical that we reduce the stigma, get people into treatment and understand what's out on the street and the implications for the use of the different substances.”

Remedy Church Pastor Deante Lavender said that in the Black community, people are reluctant to ask for help or treatment, given how people have been treated in the past, especially during the crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s.

“When you’re dealing with a community that had to deal with their last addiction phase, it wasn't declared as a public health crisis; it was declared as a personal issue,” he said. “Now that they're moving into another phase of addiction, the thought process is well, I remember when I asked for help, I didn't get it. So will I get it this time around? ... They don't know they have help because they're scared to ask for it. So I think it's just our job to do our best to show the community how we can help and what more can we do. They won't ask, but they will show up if we offer programs.”

Harm reduction at Summit County Public Health

Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said the city’s police and fire departments carry Narcan. He also said the city has implemented quick response teams, or QRTs, to respond to people’s homes in the days after they overdose to offer them services and resources, with nearly 300 visits this year.

“Sometimes there's that perception out there that I'm in trouble," he said. "You're not in trouble. We're here to help.”

Summit County Public Health is focused on treating addiction as the disease it is, as well as on harm reduction, including offering fentanyl test strips, needle exchange programs and Narcan.

Clinics for Summit Safe, a needle exchange program created in 2016, are held at 1400 S. Arlington St., No. 28, Akron, from noon to 3 p.m. Mondays and 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, and 1867 W. Market St., Akron, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays. Clinics are closed on federal holidays.

Visit scph.org/counseling/test-strips or scph.org/kit-request-form to request fentanyl test strips or naloxone be mailed to you.

Fentanyl test strips are considered illegal drug paraphernalia in Ohio, and the health department recommends keeping strips in a safe holding space and to be careful, as they’re not guaranteed and might not detect all fentanyl, and people could still overdose.

Wade said that the ADM Board worked with Summit County Public Health on mailing postcards about the ability to request Narcan kits by mail, targeting Summit County ZIP codes with the highest number of overdoses. Since June 15, there have been 815 Narcan kits requested, compared to 504 kits total for 2021. The total number of kits year-to-date for 2022 is 1,006.

The focus on harm reduction is meant to prevent people from overdosing in the first place and have an opportunity to seek treatment.

Summit County Public Health Commissioner Donna Skoda said that people don’t always know what they’re taking, and it can be stronger — and deadly.

Skoda said that everything shutting down during the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated the struggle for people with substance use disorders, as they didn’t have access to support groups, meetings or other resources that were closed.

“Treatment works, and we need to get folks into treatment, but they have to live long enough to get to treatment,” Skoda said. “Addiction is a disease. It is not a weakness, and Ii's certainly not character. I mean, it's your brain, it's chemistry.”

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Recovery at IBH, in the Summit community

IBH Addiction Recovery Certified Recovery Coach Mark Salchak runs IBH’s REACH program, which was created in 2014 and stands for Recovery, Education, Accountability, Community and Hope.

The program has served about 1,200 members, with 35,000 hours of community service and more than 2,000 support meetings. During the pandemic, the program hosted five Zoom calls a day Mondays through Fridays and two each on Saturdays and Sundays.

“It was designed to be a post-treatment, social recovery support for IBH clients,” he said. “REACH is pretty much recovery in motion.”

Salchak said the group has an 84% sober rate, with an average recovery time of 310 days, but “it's not all good news,” as since the summer of 2016, he’s known 156 people who have died.

Salchak, who said he started his recovery journey March 25, 2005, also shared that this Friday marks the first anniversary of his son’s death after losing his struggle with addiction.

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“Treatment is discovery, and recovery comes after the discovery,” said Salchak, who said relapse is part of the process. “It's a long journey. It's a long process to turn one's life around in a different direction.”

Lavender said there needs to be a community-based approach to addressing the issue. He noted that his church worked with the ADM Board this summer to give away shoes.

“We absolutely need things that aren't centered around recovery and treatment but still speaks to it,” he said. “Some would say, well, why is the ADM Board giving away shoes? Because we understand that it takes away from the financial stress of a family member, and when we take away from their financial stress from a family member, then that leaves them the opportunity not to turn toward that trigger to start using and abusing anything that can be harmful to them.”

Contact Beacon Journal reporter Emily Mills at emills@thebeaconjournal.com and on Twitter @EmilyMills818.