|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Last week, Monroe County recorded 31 opioid overdoses. While there were no fatalities, the intensity of the opioid epidemic has prompted the city of Rochester to launch a communitywide survey to examine its impact.
The survey, announced Tuesday, will gather input on quality of life, barriers to care, overdose prevention and family impact. Administered through February 2025 by Rochester Institute of Technology’s Center for Public Safety Initiatives, the anonymous survey can be taken online.
The initiative seeks to collect data, and includes input sessions, which will then inform efforts to address the crisis in the city. The city will use its allotment of state opioid settlement funds toward the collective actions. By 2025, the funds for Rochester will total $3.8 million.
“The growing national opioid epidemic continues to claim lives and devastate neighborhoods here in Rochester. It exacerbates the challenges of violence and poverty in our community, and robs our citizens of hope and opportunity,” says Mayor Malik Evans.
The city has established an Opioid Steering Committee with representatives from Monroe County, public safety departments, city residents, and community health and human services organizations. The collaboration aims to tap collective wisdom and seeks to centralize local data on the issue, from opioid deaths to community impact.
“Together with community and government partners, we’re adopting an all-hands-on-deck approach to developing a comprehensive and sustainable approach to this problem,” Evans says.
The city’s Neighborhood Ambassador Program is also playing a role with community input sessions. These sessions, in partnership with the county, will focus on the impact of the epidemic in city quadrants. The Northeast and Southwest quadrant meetings have been completed. The remaining two will take place at these locations:
■ Northwest Community Input Meeting: 6 to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 14, at Cameron Community Ministries, 48 Cameron St.
■ Southeast Community Input Meeting: 6 to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 21, at Blessed Sacrament Church, 534 Oxford St.
A recently released Monroe County medical examiner’s report showed there were 512 overdose deaths in 2023, largely driven by a rise in fatalities involving a combination of substances, including opioids, cocaine and alcohol. Overdose deaths—totaling 335—that involved both opioids and cocaine saw a 32 percent increase from 253 deaths in 2022.
The county has received $1.6 million in federal funds to provide care for individuals with substance use disorders.
Smriti Jacob is Rochester Beacon managing editor. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. See “Leave a Reply” below to discuss on this post. Comments of a general nature may be submitted to the Letters page by emailing [email protected].
Our Nonprofit Newsroom Needs Your Support
The Rochester Beacon’s journalists are dedicated to bringing you high-quality local news and analysis. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit news outlet, we rely on donations from the community to stay paywall-free. Make a tax-deductible contribution today to support our hardworking journalists—and NewsMatch will double your donation.