Between 2009 and 2016, more than 1,700 Rhode Islanders died from drug overdoses. This sobering statistic is from the Prevent Overdose Rhode Island action plan managed by Gov. Gina M. Raimondo’s Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force. It is one of many reasons why Providence Mayor Jorge O. Elorza, the Providence Fire Department, R.I. Department
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SMALL SPACE: Newport Fire Chief Brian T. Dugan, right, and Deputy Chief Paul Ripa at the Newport Fire Department. Dugan says the station doesn’t have the space to accommodate a program such as PVD Safe Stations. / PBN PHOTO/KATE WHITNEY LUCEY[/caption]
Brian T. Dugan, fire chief in Newport, said he was unaware of PVD Safe Stations and wasn’t sure about the idea because “no one has ever come into the station requesting help with [addiction] recovery.”
His staff is trained to provide treatment-center phone numbers to addicts, but when firefighters and EMTs address someone who is dealing with addiction, he said, “usually the person … is not in a position to” accept a card with a phone number.
Dugan doubts PVD Safe Stations could be easily implemented in the City by the Sea due to a lack of space. The fire department “wouldn’t be the right place,” he said, adding it would also create a problem “bringing someone to a hospital we don’t have the [space] to treat or [to] counsel.”
Middletown Fire Chief Peter Faerber similarly hadn’t heard of the program. He said the town has been “fairly fortunate” to not have a “huge spike” in overdose calls but when they do receive one, they provide contact information for treatment centers.
He said the program is “well-supported” in Providence but questioned the practicality of implementation in Middletown “as far as privacy” and the amount of training his staff has counseling addicts.
Faerber, however, called the program a “worthwhile option” for the town.
Despite the high number of drug-overdose deaths in Rhode Island, the state believes it is making strides in combating opioid abuse. In December the state announced a 9 percent decrease in drug-overdose-related deaths from January to August 2017, compared to the same period in 2016.
Boss believes the PVD Safe Stations program is an important part of the state’s effort to do “everything we can to address the epidemic.
“My hope is [the program] will increase access to care for individuals that need it, see more people access care and fewer people die of overdoses – that would be the ultimate success,” she said.