There are a number of efforts to fight substance abuse in the region. Four in particular, which have been in the news lately, deserve a special shout-out.
One is the heroin treatment center to open soon in LaPorte. Frontline Foundations is putting the finishing touches on its new downtown facility. The faith-based clinic will be open two days a week initially, with more days possible depending on demand. Each client will undergo six hours of treatment a week for a few months to two years, depending on the individual's needs.
Another effort is the plan championed by U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., to establish best practices for the prescribing of pain medicine and train emergency responders in administering naloxone, which serves as an antidote for opiate overdoses. Donnelly reintroduced the legislation last week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said prescription drug abuse is an epidemic. Opiate use is widespread in Northwest Indiana.
"This isn't just another bill. This is a situation we're living with in Indiana every day now," Donnelly said.
Prescription drug abuse and heroin are the region's biggest drug problems, according to Aaron Kochar, director of prevention and education at Porter-Starke Services, a mental health and drug treatment agency based in Valparaiso.
In southwest Indiana, the heroin problem is so pronounced that the Indiana General Assembly passed legislation this year allowing creation of local needle exchange programs like the one in Scott County, where an HIV outbreak occurred after dirty needles were shared by drug users.
Under this state plan, counties with high rates of hepatitis C — a liver disease commonly found among intravenous drug users, considered an indicator for HIV risk — could create needle exchanges. The aim isn't to encourage drug abuse but to fight a public health problem.
The fourth effort to fight drug abuse is aimed at educating parents about the dangers of marijuana.
The recent “Blunt Truth About Pot” program in Portage brought together people across Northwest Indiana to educate parents about the dangers posed by marijuana use among children and adolescents, especially at a time when medical marijuana and decriminalization efforts across the nation make the drug seem less dangerous to young people.
If you smoked it when you were younger, well, today's marijuana isn't what you smoked. The THC content — that's the active ingredient that gets users stoned — is far higher today than in previous decades. It's a fact that is central to the debate over the relative harm posed by marijuana use.
"Unless your kid is paying rent and you allow them to put a lock on the door, check their room," advised Portage Police Chief Troy Williams. "Kids are going to make mistakes. Hopefully they don't make a lot of them and they learn from the first one. Just be aware of what's out there."
Fighting substance abuse is a multi-pronged effort. There must be treatment, but there also must be law enforcement, education and prevention efforts. Efforts like these, and others, are vital to our region's future.