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Bockman gives update on opioid crisis

By Joseph Abraham
Posted 10/19/21

SULLIVAN COUNTY –– County Coroner and Mobilemedic EMS Founder Albee Bockman, said that in 2020, Mobilemedic answered 242 calls for overdoses from their 911 center dispatch.

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Bockman gives update on opioid crisis

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SULLIVAN COUNTY –– County Coroner and Mobilemedic EMS Founder Albee Bockman, said that in 2020, Mobilemedic answered 242 calls for overdoses from their 911 center dispatch.

“Think about that,” said Bockman to legislators during Thursday’s Public Safety and Law Enforcement Committee. “Of those 242 overdoses, a little under 100 were actual overdoses from opiates. And of those 100, only 28 percent of them were transported to the hospital. Meaning, conversely, 72 percent didn’t go.”

Legislature Chairman Rob Doherty asked Bockman if there was something to compel those individuals to get treatment.

“The issue is we’re not allowed to force them,” Bockman replied. “Once they say ‘No, I’m fine. I don’t have to go.’ We’ll just see them the next day or a week later. We cannot, in our EMS field, compel them to go.”

Bockman said on the scene, they try to counsel them, and they hand out the cards that the county’s health department gives them.

“But that’s the issue,” said Bockman. “What do we do with them, once they refuse to go. If we can get them to go to the hospital, get involved with the Suboxone program that the hospital does have … and get them some help. But it’s from that point on the ground, where they need the help, [that] we have to work on here in our county.”

Legislator Nadia Rajsz, who chairs the Health and Family Services Committee, asked how he proposes they work with those individuals on the ground.

Bockman suggested a type of county mobile health unit that would come to the scene and counsel the individuals right then and there.

“Otherwise we’re not going to grab this thing,” said Bockman. “We’ll keep talking month after month after month. We don’t have a place to send them.”

Deputy Commissioner of Health and Family Services Wendy Brown said with some of the money (from the opioid settlements) coming to the county, they’re looking into a program similar to what Bockman mentioned.

Fentanyl and OTC meds
In other news, four of the 22 deaths in the county in the past month, or 18.2 percent, were overdose deaths, which according to Bockman, stayed on par with an average of 15-20 percent of county deaths resulting from the opioid crisis each month.

Bockman said the majority of the overdoses, when they get back the toxicology reports, have a component of fentanyl. He added that they’ve gotten word to watch for over the counter medications that are now being laced with fentanyl, and that it's attacking the teenage population.

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  • lhfc1563

    Wonder what happened!?

    Last time Albee reported he said they had only ONE OD Death , now it's back up again!

    IF the person is a danger to him/herself or the community you can do something. I would say an OD is a danger to oneself.

    I said this from the start, Sullivan County needs long term programs/housing and that OPIOID SETTLEMENT money should go to them.

    As usual I think the money will be diverted to something else, non-opioid based.

    Wednesday, October 20, 2021 Report this