Erie County Probation Officer Debra Smith
NIAGARA FALLS — To many CSEA members, the heroin and opioid epidemic is not just a new reality of their jobs– but a nightmare for their families as well.
A growing number of working families whose children have died from overdoses are calling for a change in approach to addressing the crisis, including increasing treatment availability, having insurance companies improve their coverage of addiction treatment options and treating addiction as the disease it is.
One of those activists is CSEA Erie County Local member Debra Smith, who lost her son Nathaniel to addiction in September 2015. Smith, who is employed by the Erie County Probation Department, recently told her story as part of a panel discussion at the CSEA Western Region Fall Conference.
“Like many people who experience accidents and injury, (Nathaniel) was prescribed Demerol after surgery and became addicted to painkillers,” Smith said. Nathaniel soon became dependent to his medicine, setting him on a path of addiction that ended with his death.
“I am heartbroken,” Smith told conference attendees. “Nathaniel died at 26. He was brilliant, sensitive and kind. He was a loving and gifted person, and he didn’t deserve to die alone.”
After losing her son, Smith decided to take action to ensure that no other family has to go through her pain. She told her story before the Erie County Legislature to urge lawmakers to boost funding to combat the opioid crisis, establish a county opiate epidemic task force and fight for humane treatment for those who are addicted.
Specifically, Smith is educating others about humanizing addiction to hopefully break the social stigma attached to addiction. “By telling my story, hopefully we can reduce harm by raising awareness– and treat the less fortunate with more dignity and spread a little more unconditional love around,” she said.
Legislation must match social demand for policy changes
The opioid epidemic has also had a devastating effect on children whose parents or guardians are fighting addiction. Many CSEA members report the rise in social service caseloads is partly due to the opioid epidemic and the lack of resources dedicated to drug treatment, family services and mental health services here in New York state and nationwide.
CSEA is urging the governor to sign a bill that would limit the number of cases per month for child protective services workers in an effort to give struggling families the help they so desperately deserve. This was one of the main reasons why the Western Region Education and Training Committee updated members about the national crisis at its recent conference.
In addition to Smith’s story, the region program included a look at opiates throughout history, approaches to treatment and recovery and presentations by law enforcement, a social worker who treats those with addiction and a testimony from a recovering addict.
Western Region activist Kari Wilferth, an Ontario County Social Services caseworker, said the workshop was empowering, emotional and necessary. “My takeaway from this experience is that heroin does not discriminate,” she said. “Addiction can happen to anyone, and we all need to be problem solvers when confronting this epidemic.”
— Photos & Story by Ove Overmyer
