As state's heroin problem grows, schools focus on prevention

On Board Online • November 24, 2014

By Connie McKinney
Special Correspondent

Linda Ventura was on the train commuting to work in New York City from her home on Long Island when she heard the worst news a parent can hear: Her 21-year-old, Thomas, had died of a heroin overdose.

"Heroin became his best friend and his boss," she said. "That disease takes your loved one hostage. They don't really care what goes on. They just need what they need for their addiction."

Heroin abuse is on the rise in the nation and in New York State, prompting Gov. Andrew Cuomo to launch a Combat Heroin campaign ( www.combatheroin.ny.gov ) in September. Two sessions at NYSSBA's Annual Convention in October also called attention to the problem.

Last year, 89,269 people throughout the state were admitted to treatment for heroin and prescription opioids, an increase from 63,793 in 2004.

Most of the increase was among young people ages 18 to 24, according to the office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, which has school officials talking about the role public education can play in addressing the problem.

On Long Island, the Nassau County Office of Mental Health, Chemical Dependence and Developmental Disabilities Services has contracts with 29 school districts in which the county department pays part of the salary for social workers to conduct prevention programs. Some programs are done in the classroom during health classes. Speakers are available to give talks to students on issues such as understanding substance abuse.

Nassau County officials also conduct training about Narcan, an emergency overdose treatment carried by ambulances and some police. Public schools are not authorized stock to the drug.

At the school level, "building a relationship with students so we can help monitor their well-being is important," said Lisa Ruiz, superintendent for the East Rockaway School District on Long Island. "Oftentimes, aside from parents, we are the only community contact or place that can do that. It's about making a commitment to recognize that this is an issue and stepping up to take on a role because we need to."

Why heroin use is up

Young people who get addicted to heroin often start by sampling some prescription opioids - painkillers derived from opium - in Mom or Dad's medicine cabinet, according to Alan Wilmarth, administrative director of behavioral health for United Health Services in Binghamton. "They're easy to get," he said. "They're easy to conceal. And they give you a great sense of euphoria."

What they don't realize is these pills are highly addictive, Wilmarth said. Once the pills run out, they turn to heroin, which tends to be cheap and easily available.

Most teens know heroin is dangerous and easy to overdose on but they don't think it's going to happen to them, Wilmarth said.

"Young people suffer from an artificial sense of immortality or invulnerability," he said. "If they see someone overdose and die, they think it must be really, really good heroin. People who are addicted think, 'boy, if I could get that drug, I would have the best high I've ever had.'"

Other young people try heroin as a form of recreation or because of peer pressure, said James Dolan, director of community services for the Nassau County Office of Mental Health, Chemical Dependency and Developmental Disabilities Services. Still other teens suffer from depression, anxiety or other mental illnesses, something an estimated one out of five teens suffers from each year, he said.

"They're feeling emotional pain," he said. "They look to find relief from this psychic pain."

That's what happened to Thomas Ventura, his mother believes. Thomas had to face the death of three grandparents and the divorce of his parents within three years.

"I see it in a lot of children," she said. "When they can't deal with things, they self-medicate. It makes them feel normal. It makes them feel a part of something. Or it makes them not feel, period."

New program in Nassau County

Nassau County will soon begin a new program called Mental Health First Aid training in which school officials, parent organizations and pediatricians will learn how to screen a teenager who is at high risk for substance abuse, Dolan said.

Garden City High School on Long Island runs several drug prevention programs for students, said Gina Christel, director of guidance for the school. One popular program last year featured former National Basketball Association player and former heroin addict Chris Herren who spoke to students.

"You could hear a pin drop when he told his story," she said.

Students help spread the word about the dangers of drug addiction through peer education, (SADD), Christel said. Many educational programs are offered for parents, sometimes along with programs such as sophomore parent night or college night.

Both the Garden City and the East Rockaway districts have participated in Narcan training. They also participate in the Too Good For Drugs program for high school students and the Lion's Quest program for middle school students.

East Rockaway also has a district-wide prevention task force in place and has heard several speakers and presentations from groups such as the fire department, Nassau County Police and the Nassau County District Attorney's office. Students will be surveyed this school year to assess their risk factors for drug use and their protective factors - factors which help prevent drug abuse, Ruiz said.

Parents and other community members are involved in the fight against heroin through groups such as the Coalition for Youth in East Rockaway. Ventura applauded those efforts and said that young people, parents, school officials and the rest of the community need to band together and fight heroin abuse.

"The kids themselves are tired of burying their friends," she said. "We all need to start taking care of one another."