Drug Facts Week kicks off in Clark County

Feb. 6—CLARK COUNTY — Community leaders say there have been major strides to address addiction in Clark County in recent years, but there is still much progress needed to provide comprehensive care for those struggling with substance use.

Clark County Cares kicked off the annual Drug Facts Week Monday with a report about substance use in the county. A panel of community leaders, moderated by Clark Circuit Court Judge Brad Jacobs, discussed the challenges facing the community and the programs available to address issues of substance use and addiction.

This is the eighth year of Drug Facts Week, which includes programming throughout the week. The Monday panel discussion took place at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Jeffersonville, and it explored topics ranging from housing to law enforcement.

Clark County Health Officer Dr. Eric Yazel said that in the past year unintentional overdoses in Clark County were down by 23%, but the death rate has remained about the same. In the past year, there were 74 overdose fatalities, "which is 74 too many," he said.

"Our death rate has kind of plateaued," he said. "We were down about 40% prior to the pandemic, and like everywhere else, we saw a big rise, and we've got to stabilize that, and we've got to keep chipping away at it. It's more dangerous substances out there."

Yazel said when he reviews overdoses in 2017 or 2018, "we were handing people a piece of paper or a card with a phone number on it saying good luck," but there are now many more services available to help people facing substance abuse.

"We've got a lot of new challenges that are out there, but we've a lot got more things at our disposal also," he said.

Coleen Nelms, admissions coordinator and peer recovery coach for LifeSpring Health Systems, spoke about her struggles with substance use, her recovery journey and her work to help others battling addiction.

When she became a certified peer recovery coach with LifeSpring's Turning Point Center, it changed her life, she said.

"I've been able to connect people all over the state with resources," she said. "If we can't get them at Turning Point, I get them somewhere else."

At age 10, Nelms began using substances when she was prescribed Hydrocodone, and by age 14, she was prescribed Opana.

She eventually became pregnant while battling addiction, and she "spiraled," she said. She faced homelessness, and when her opioid prescription ended, she turned to heroin.

At one point, an overdose put her in a coma for three days. She went through various programs as she combatted substance abuse, and when she reached Wellstone Regional Hospital, she "was able to feel safe."

As she works in recovery, she has seen "people get their kids back," and to be able to help even one person has given her purpose, she said.

Barb Anderson, a co-founder of Clark County Cares and director of Haven House Services, said the community went from just a handful of providers for substance abuse in 2015 to about 30 providers.

"A lot of that has to do with the awareness and the fact that we all lobbied to get those people to come to our meetings and their recovery centers all over the place," she said.

She said there is still a "long way to go." One of the needs is more support to provide stable housing for those facing addiction and going through recovery. Through Haven House Services, many of the homeless individuals she serves face addiction.

For those with felonies related to drugs, it is difficult to find a home, and they are not eligible for public housing, Anderson emphasizes.

Beth Keeney, the president and CEO of LifeSpring Health Services, said the provider offers "probably the largest continuum of care here in Clark County," and LifeSpring has taken steps to expand access to services through community partnerships.

The provider is offering an "open access" entry model to increase accessibility at its locations.

"We really want to make sure that when people are ready for treatment that it is available to them," Keeney said. "And that's rather different than the way from the way it used to operate. We would set an appointment six, eight to 12 weeks out... and hopefully, that person was still motivated to engage in care when they get there 12 weeks later."

LifeSpring "reimagined" its model, and Keeney is observing a focus on change at the state level in the approach to behavioral health and substance abuse disorder. The state's Behavioral Health Commission is working to establish a "plan of care" that is "designed to meet their needs" instead of "one size fits all," she said.

She also noted that proposed state legislation is looking to improve care for addiction and substance abuse across Indiana.

Jeffersonville Police Major Josh Lynch said "traditionally, law enforcement's role in all of this is more of an enforcement," but in recent years, the Jeffersonville Police Department has been "saying we need to do more."

He said JPD's partnership with LifeSpring through Project CARE has been a success. The program is an overdose response team that provides support within 24-72 hours after an overdose, allowing providers to connect people with the recovery resources they need immediately after a crisis.

"When an officer responds to a call and someone has either overdosed or that officer recognizes that they're struggling with substance abuse or addiction, they can refer them to Project CARE staff," Lynch said. "And then that staff works with our officer to go out and actually go into the field, make contact with them and try to connect them with services that they need."

Lynch said that in 2021, there were 59 overdose investigations in the city and 193 calls for service related to overdoses. By the end of 2022, the number dropped to 37 overdose investigations. The calls to service for overdoses dropped to 157.

Since Project CARE started in 2021, the program has identified and contacted 365 people facing substance abuse, and 214 of those were connected with recovery services.

"We're very proud of that," Lynch said. "We're finding more efficient ways and more unique ways to get those services to people. I think the collaboration here with LifeSpring has been fantastic — an adventure and a journey — and we're going to continue to move in the right direction."