From Harford County government:
The Harford County Office of Drug Control Policy and the nonprofit Addiction Connections Resource, Inc. will present “Facing Addiction in Harford County: A Conversation with the 19th Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. Vivek Murthy” on Thursday, September 14 from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. at Bel Air High School in Bel Air, Maryland.
Dr. Murthy has been a leading advocate within the healthcare profession for addressing the nation’s opioid epidemic and working in a luxury drug rehab. This free, public event will feature a candid panel discussion on addiction and the heroin epidemic followed by a question and answer session with Dr. Murthy, and state and local leaders. Maryland Lieutenant Governor Boyd Rutherford will provide opening remarks. The panel will include Harford County Executive Barry Glassman; Executive Director of the Maryland Opioid Operational Command Center Clay Stamp; Harford County Public Schools Superintendent Barbara Canavan; Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler, and Joe Ryan, administrator of the Harford County Office of Drug Control Policy.
“I urge everyone to attend this important and potentially lifesaving discussion. We have reached to the highest levels of the medical community to help families understand addiction, to implement best practices in treatment and prevention, and to heal our communities,” Harford County Executive Barry Glassman said. “Dr. Murthy is one of the nation’s most prominent experts on addiction. Together we will explore strategies being used at home and around the country to fight this devastating scourge.”
During his tenure as U.S. surgeon general from 2014 to 2017, Dr. Murthy launched the “TurnTheTideRx” campaign, catalyzing a movement among health professionals to address the national opioid crisis. He also authored a landmark report on opiates, the first publication from a surgeon general on the topic of drug and alcohol addiction. Released in November 2016, the 400-page report titled “Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General’s Report on Alcohol, Drugs and Health,” emphasized that dependency on opioids and other substances must not be viewed as a character flaw. To read the full report visit https://addiction.surgeongeneral.gov.
Upon the report’s release, Dr. Murthy said in a statement, “We will only be successful in addressing addiction — and other illnesses — when we recognize the humanity within each of us. People are more than their disease. All of us are more than our worst mistakes.”
Dr. Murthy was most recently featured in the September 2017 issue of National Geographic. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/09/three-questions-vivek-murthy/
Students, their parents and caregivers, and all concerned citizens are invited to attend the Sept. 14 presentation. Attendees will learn new information about the increase of synthetic opioids and fentanyl in Harford County, why opioids are so addictive; and local, state and national efforts to fight the opioid epidemic. In addition, families will learn about the signs and symptoms to look for, and where to go for help.
Participation in the program supports local Parent Teacher Associations (PTA). The Harford County Office of Drug Control Policy will grant $250 to any Harford County PTA with 100 people in attendance from their school.
Audience members will have the opportunity to pose questions anonymously to the panelists. Questions may also be emailed in advance to odcp@harfordcountymd.gov.
The Harford County Sheriff’s HOPE Trailer, which includes a mock bedroom to show parents where to look for drugs, will be available for tours beginning at 5:00 p.m. prior to the panel discussion. In addition, the Office of Drug Control Policy will host the Fourth Annual Human Rope to Stop the Dope event outside the school from 5:00 p.m. to 5:55 p.m. During this event, individuals will link arms to form a human “rope” to raise awareness about addiction.
“Addiction Connections Resource is proud to assist in having Dr. Murthy share his experiences and the strategies for what works in preventing, treating, and educating people about substance use disorder. If you’re worried about heroin and opioids in Harford County, you and your family should attend this meeting,” Linda Williams, Executive Director of Addiction Connections Resource, Inc., said.
To learn more about this event, including PTA incentives, please visit www.harfordcountymd.gov/services/drugcontrol or contact the Harford County Office of Drug Control Policy at 410-638-3333. For those who are unable to attend, Harford Cable Network will air the event live on its channels (Comcast channel 21, Armstrong channel 7 & Verizon FiOS channel 31) and on the county website; video will also be available after the event on demand at https://hcn.viebit.com.
If someone is stupid enough to take opioids, just let them die. The odds of them ever becoming useful members of society are very slim. We’re better off with them out of the gene pool.
Apparently you have never been to a doctor or the hospital and treated for pain. Thanks for letting the world know just how stupid you are.
Well, it’s all related but I’m pretty sure the basis of his comment wasn’t to suggest someone who is prescribed a depressant by a legal medical doctor to for temporary relief for a legitimate medical reason.
I’m sure he was talking about the countless under 30 years you see driving and walking around Harford County who obviously have some kind of mental health issue/addiction problem with a depressant that they are obtaining most likely unlawfully.
Sweet Jesus you can’t swing a dead cat without another idiot popping up. Opioids are not depressants, you people are seriously misinformed but I like your enthusiasm to show the world just how fu@kin stupid you are.
You need help! Please educate yourself about this horrible DISEASE.
“Let them die!”, who would be left to vote for Trump?
Everyone else.
Sure you are – maybe some former, angry, old, inbred, West Virginia Democrat (aka Republican Trump voter) but hell then again I thought most of them were addicted to meth or opioids.
Well, it’s all related but I’m pretty sure the basis of his comment wasn’t to suggest someone who is prescribed a depressant by a legal medical doctor to for temporary relief for a legitimate medical reason.
I’m sure he was talking about the countless under 30 years you see driving and walking around Harford County who obviously have some kind of mental health issue/addiction problem with a depressant that they are obtaining most likely unlawfully.
You do realize a significant portion of opioid addictions start with legally prescribed drugs, don’t you? Someone will go in for surgery on their back, get prescribed a bunch of percoset, and viola. You have the start of addiction. Period.
Also, learn what depressants are, you dolt.
Oh, is that it? You solved it.
Make sure you read the “Terms of Service” before you start insulting people.
Well, it’s all related but I’m pretty sure the basis of that comment wasn’t to suggest someone who is prescribed a depressant by a legal medical doctor to for temporary relief for a legitimate medical reason, and does not get addicted.
I’m sure he was talking about the countless under 30 year olds you see driving and walking around Harford County that have some kind of mental health issue/addiction problem with a depressant that they are obtaining most likely unlawfully.
You should park your car at one of the countless opioid addiction treatment facilities in this county and watch.
Gee how about posing it one more time we didn’t get it the first 5…..
Well, it’s all related but I’m pretty sure the basis of that comment wasn’t to suggest someone who is prescribed a depressant by a legal medical doctor to for temporary relief for a legitimate medical reason, and does not get addicted.
I’m sure he was talking about the countless under 30 year olds you see driving and walking around Harford County that have some kind of mental health issue/addiction problem with a depressant that they are obtaining most likely unlawfully.
You should park your car at one of the countless opioid addiction treatment facilities in this county and watch.
So, we are instructed as a society on Addiction from a Surgeon General? Why not have a panel of Pastors, Family Counselors, Social Workers that are the ‘Boots on the Ground” to share what THEY are learning about Addiction. Maybe society is tired of hearing that it starts with the break-down of the family. Drugs, Alcohol, Sex Addiction is nothing but a medication for a hurting and torn apart heart.