This was not completion of the discussion. However we are enthusiastic, and grateful for the information and discussion that was shared Thursday night in the Fentanyl Town Hall we hosted at the Canyon Nation Recreation Center.
About 150 community members ended up in individual, and more than 5,000 more enjoyed through live video, to hear and find out about the fentanyl crisis, how it is impacting the Santa Clarita Valley, and what can be done about it.
The takeaways?
There were numerous. Amongst the ones that stuck out to us:
• In 2022, it’s approximated fentanyl took the lives of at least 30 young SCV citizens. These deaths are frequently referred to as overdoses– however as the panel conversation individuals mentioned, many of them might more appropriately be referred to as fentanyl poisonings, since the huge bulk of people who pass away from fentanyl aren’t even conscious that they are taking fentanyl, as they are taking in some other drug– be it Percocet, Oxycontin, Euphoria, even marijuana– that, unbeknownst to them, is laced with fentanyl.
• Drugs threaten. We all understand that. However this is a various kind of hazardous: A dosage as little as a grain of salt can be deadly.
• As moms and dads, many of us recognize with the idea that we require to talk to our kidsabout drugs However we require to do it much previously than you may believe. From a young age, we need to lead our kids to be “hard-wired” versus taking drugs from any source besides a physician’s prescription or an over the counter medicine under adult guidance. Any drug dispersed “on the street” can be laced with fentanyl. And it can eliminate you.
• Naloxone, understood by the trademark name Narcan, is an effective tool to reverse a fentanyl overdose when administered correctly and right away. However it is NOT a preventive medicine; taking it in advance of taking in something laced with fentanyl will not work.
• Administering naloxone to somebody you think has actually been poisoned by fentanyl can just help, not harm. If something else has actually triggered their medical injury, naloxone will do them no damage.
• If you believe your kids will not fall victim to fentanyl poisoning, keep in mind the severe truth that the huge bulk of moms and dads who have actually lost kids to fentanyl had actually believed the really exact same thing.
We thank all who participated in– any one of them might lose a loved one to fentanyl, and any one of them may be able to prevent such a loss with the information and tools that were shared.
We likewise owe an unique financial obligation of appreciation to all of the companies and people who got involved, supplying a wealth of information and recommendations for moms and dads, consisting of:
• L.A. County Manager Kathryn Barger, who went over the county’s dedications to combating versus the fentanyl crisis.
• Santa Clarita Mayor Jason Gibbs, who brought his point of view not just as a city government leader, however likewise as a papa.
• Capt. Brandon Dean, of the Constable’s Department’s Narcotics Bureau and Overdose Reaction Job Force, who explained police’s approach to the fentanyl crisis– stressing that the approach begins with prevention.
• Capt. Justin Diez of the SCV Constable’s Station, who stressed that utilizing Narcan to conserve a life is something that has to be done rapidly– as in, within minutes of an overdose.
• Superintendent Mike Kuhlman of the William S. Hart Union High School District, who supplied us all a window into the highs and lows of his task: He gets to rejoice and commemorate trainee successes in the class, on the phase, on the athletic field– however he likewise has to face crises like this one. It can be heartbreaking.
• Pat Sprengel, L.A. County Fire Department battalion chief, who shared his experiences from the field in reacting to fentanyl overdoses.
• Drs. Eric El-Tobgy and Siddarth Puri from L.A. County Public Health, who shared information on the actions Public Health is taking to fight thecrisis Puri led the Narcan presentation, revealing guests how to correctly administer the nasal spray.
• Dr. Darrin Privett, emergency space director at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, who explained for the audience simply how widespread and regularly fentanyl cases provide themselves in the regional ER.
• Jonathan Hatami, a deputy district lawyer and SCV citizen, who promoted for more aggressive prosecution of those who intentionally disperse the lethal fentanyl.
• Cary Quashen, the creator of Action Drug Rehab, who’s popular in the SCV as a voice of proficiency on concerns relatingto drug addiction He stressed that, in his years of experience dealing with one drug crisis after another, the fentanyl crisis is distinctively scary and lethal since of the drug’s surreptitious existence in simply about anything on the streets.
• Olivia Flores, who accompanied Quashen and informed her individual story of her more youthful sibling, who passed away from fentanyl. He was just 18.
We thank all of them, for their involvement, their point of views, their recommendations and, many of all, for caring.
This wasn’t completion of the discussion– it will take a lot more discussion, and action to go with it, to protect our community versus the fentanyl scourge.
We stay dedicated to that.