BROOKVILLE — With several other area counties, including Fayette and Wayne counties, having community meetings or summits to discuss the growing issue of heroin and opioid abuse in the region, Franklin County is now joining that group as well.
Community leaders and officials within the county will come together next week at the Works of Mercy in Brookville to tackle the subject, with the goal to create a comprehensive plan for the county on how to approach the heroin problem.
“We’re trying to get some of the community leaders together,” said Franklin County Sheriff Ken Murphy. “We will be discussing the extent of the problem in our community, what we perceive is the biggest threat and moving on to what can be done. What are the strengths of our community that can help us in this.”
The gathering will “have a facilitated discussion to gather data from multiple community partners on awareness, prevention, supply, harm reduction and treatment,” according to Melinda Brown, executive director of Franklin County’s Stayin' Alive anti-drug coalition. “Information from this discussion will be used to develop a comprehensive plan to address the issue.”
While Murphy said the county has not seen as many problems stemming from heroin – such as overdoses and arrests for dealing or possession – as some neighboring counties, the county should take the steps to formulate a plan to combat it regardless.
“We’d like to think we are much better off than Fayette County when it comes to the heroin problem,” he said. “I don’t know if we are, but we seem to have less associated problems.”
The comprehensive plan will be funded through a grant from Interactive Health, according to Murphy, and will be in cooperation with four to five other counties within the region.
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