Wood County Prevention Coalition
Uniting For A Drug-Free Community Since 2004
Drugged versus drunk driving: What are police seeing on the roads?
pressconnects.com
Updated 2:02 p.m. ET Aug. 24, 2017
Motorists gave way to a swarm of emergency responders converging on one of the busiest blocks of Main Street in Binghamton's West Side.
Then a horrifying scene came into view.
A 47-year-old man this Monday evening of April 24 had been hit by a 2010 Hyundai Elantra, his body dragged under the car for several yards before it came to a stop.
Ronald I. Richardson was dead. And the Hyundai driver, Jennifer Grenchus, now is facing a vehicular manslaughter charge with allegations of drug-impaired driving.
For decades, enforcement and public education resources have targeted drunk driving. But now drug-impaired driving is growing as a cause of accidents and deaths across the United States and in Europe as alcohol-impaired driving is reportedly decreasing.
In 2015, just under 6 out of 10 fatally-injured drivers in the U.S. were tested for drugs. Of those, about a third showed evidence of drugs, according to federal data cited by a study on drug-impaired driving by the Governors Highway Safety Association and the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility in April.
Dozens of drugs — legal and illegal — can impair driving. "Many drivers do not understand how various drugs can affect driving ability and increase crash risk," according to the study
.Consider the late May driving under the influence arrest of golfer Tiger Woods in Florida. A toxicology report released Aug. 14 showed he had five different drugs in his body: THC, the active ingredient for marijuana, painkillers Vicodin and Dilaudid, anxiety and sleep drug Xanax and the anti-insomnia drug Ambien.
Across New York State, arrest trends reflect the nation: In recent years, incidents of alcohol-impaired drivers have declined slightly while arrests for drugged driving are becoming more frequent.
DeWine: Drug prevention education should be taught every year
ByAllison Reamer | BLADE STAFF WRITER
Published on Aug. 22, 2017 | Updated 5:56 p. m
In order to help tackle the drug epidemic, drug prevention education should be established at every Ohio school, said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
“We’re not going to really get on top of this drug epidemic until we do a better job in regard to prevention,” he said during an outreach event for community leaders at the University of Toledo’s Brady Engineering Innovation Center.
Representatives from local law enforcement, the Toledo fire department, community agencies, and nonprofit organizations were present to learn about resources available through the attorney general’s office.
Mr. DeWine also spoke of a 2017 Ohio Joint Study Committee on Drug Use Prevention Education, which examined appropriate education measures that schools and committees can take to reduce and help prevent substance abuse.
The study committee concluded that Ohio schools should provide consistent, evidence-based substance abuse education for all Ohio students, beginning in kindergarten.
“You’re not going to talk to kindergarten kids about heroin, but you might talk to them about not picking up a pill that’s on the floor,” Mr. DeWine said.
The attorney general said he believes such education can be worked into curriculum, and several Ohio schools are already doing this, he said.
While Mr. DeWine said it’s not mandatory, “when he becomes governor,” he will ask that it be implemented in every school.
Ohio law does not permit the state Board of Education to adopt Health Education Standards; however, it does direct schools and districts to include health education and other related topics through its K-12 curriculum, according to Ohio Department of Education spokesman Brittany Halpin. The curriculum is chosen at the local level, she said.
OPINION: A Simple Move to Save Thousands of Lives From Overdose
By MEGAN McLEMORE and COREY DAVIS New York Times
AUG. 18, 2017
The United States is in the midst of a public health crisis. More than 59,000 people are believed to have died from drug overdose in 2016, an increase of nearly 20 percent from the previous year. Most of these deaths are caused by opioids like prescription painkillers, heroin and the potent synthetic drug fentanyl.
The Trump administration has said that addressing the opioid epidemic is a top priority. On Aug. 10, President Trump declared opioid use and overdose a national emergency. If the White House is serious about this problem, there is a simple step it should take as soon as possible to save thousands of lives.
A vast majority of opioid deaths are preventable if the person overdosing is given naloxone, a safe, easy-to-use and relatively inexpensive drug that has successfully reversed tens of thousands of overdoses over the years. But this medicine is often not on hand when and where it is needed. Making it more readily available could save many lives.
On Aug. 8, Tom Price, the secretary of health and human services, highlighted the importance of naloxone, saying it should be “as present as needed and possible anywhere across the country.” A week earlier, the Trump administration’s newly convened Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis released an interim report endorsing increased access to the lifesaving drug. It made several recommendations that would increase its availability, including developing model legislation to require that naloxone be prescribed in combination with high-risk opioids.
But the commission failed to endorse one step that could be a game changer in what it calls a “national emergency”: making naloxone available over the counter.
Naloxone, approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1971, has been designated an “essential medicine” by the World Health Organization and has been used for decades in emergency rooms, ambulances and clinics. It is not a controlled substance, it is not believed to have any potential for abuse, and it has no clinical effect if given to someone not on opioids. With minimal training, anyone can easily administer it.
Community & School Based Prevention: A Comprehensive Approach Since 2004
RSVP to the next WCPC Community Meeting!
Wood County Prevention Coalition Meeting
Friday, Sep 29, 2017, 08:30 AM
Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH
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About Us
Our Vision: Helping youth be drug-free, productive and responsible citizens.
Our Mission: We are a coalition of compassionate community members working together to coordinate high quality programs for the prevention of youth substance abuse in Wood County.
Email: mkarna@wcesc.org
Website: wcprevention.org
Location: 1867 Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
Phone: (419)-354-9010
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WCPCoalition
Twitter: @woodpccoalition