By Jim Thaxton
FALMOUTH—During Falmouth City Council’s caucus meeting last Thursday, Linde Eaton and Abigail Henderson from Three Rivers District Health Department requested permission to place Narcan distribution boxes within the city limits.
Police Chief Marty Hart spoke in favor of the program and offered to place one of the boxes at the Police Department.
Council will formally take up the request at its next meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 20 at City Hall.
Narcan, a drug generically known as naloxone, is used to revive people suffering from an opioid overdose.
According to Eaton, a registered nurse, and Henderson, a certified community health worker, while most people associate Narcan with addiction, overdose statistics tell a different story.
Accidental overdose of opioids occurs among the elderly when they confuse their prescriptions.
At the other end of the spectrum infants and children driven by their curiosity have taken the opioids from family members’ prescriptions.
According to the latest data in Kentucky, nine children 9 and younger died from an opioid overdose.
“If prescription opioids are in the home, it is a good idea to also have Narcan readily available,” Eaton advised.
If someone administers the drug to a person who is unconscious for any other reason, it will not harm the victim.
“If a child ingests Narcan, it may cause irritation in the nose or mouth, but it won’t hurt them,” Eaton said.
Early on when the public first became aware of Narcan, many objected claiming the drug was simply enabling addiction, she said.
The clinical response to that objection is as applicable today as it was over a decade ago: “You can’t fix death.”
Narcan saves lives and a life saved can lead to overcoming a substance use disorder (SUD), she said.
Henderson assists people with SUDs through The Thrive Initiative at Three Rivers District Health Department.
This is a free program designed to assist individuals in their journey to recovery.
The Thrive Initiative uses SMART, an evidence-based self-help process that assists people to make positive changes in their lives. SMART stands for Self-Management and Recovery Training.
The SMART approach to sustained recovery is secular and research-based while allowing for participants to continue to engage in other recovery programs, Henderson said.
Visit www.smartrecovery.org or contact Henderson at 859-654-6985 for information about The Thrive Initiative, she said.
OTHER BUSINESS
Also during the caucus meeting, council:
• Received a copy of the financial audit. Paul Maddox from Maddox & Associates, CPA reviewed the audit with Council noting no problems and complimented the city for their financial records.
• Tami Vater, director Pendleton County Economic and Tourism Development shared progress on Forks on the Licking BBQ event scheduled for June 7 at the Pendleton County Fairgrounds.
The event’s Facebook page has already generated over 400 followers in less than a week. Vater told Council that the new festival event caught the attention of a local celebrity Stacey Jett, who has appeared on Food Network, Travel Channel and Netflix World Food Championships.
Because of the nature of the festival, Vater requested support from the council to allow beer to be sold. The police chief shared his research for a temporary license and assured council that there would be a police presence there during the entire event.
• Fire Chief John Lucas and Mayor Luke Price said they have identified a ladder truck in Alexandria that both men believe would be advantageous in fighting fires within the city.
Lucas said the cost of the truck was within the current budget. Also built into the budget were funds to pay volunteers for training at the station and within the city.
Council will address the truck and stipends for volunteers at the next meeting.
• Hart told council that one more hire was all that was necessary for the police department to provide 24/7 officer protection in the city.
Hart also shared several anecdotes about the successful use of the K-9 unit in the city, county and neighboring counties leading to drug arrests.
• Price addressed the need to improve insurance benefits for city employees. He praised the tireless work done to keep the city’s streets open during the snowstorm. There were six water main breaks during the freeze, and all were promptly repaired.
Price told Council about a surprise visit by the Kentucky Division of Water to the water treatment facility. According to the mayor, the inspection went very well and “everything is good.”
Council was also informed that electrical lines from the substation to the water treatment facility are being upgraded as a preemptive measure to keep the facility running.
• Brian Thompson Zoning Administrator and City Attorney Brandon Voelker discussed ways to clean up the wording in the city ordinance to best allow code enforcement to address some of the issues regarding storage sheds, RVs and nonoperative vehicles. Price requested that Thompson and Voelker to put together the necessary changes for Council’s next meeting.