Oregon had the fastest-growing rate of drug overdose deaths in the United States at the end of 2023, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The tragic boom in preventable death stems from the increased dissemination and use of fentanyl.
This synthetic opioid is 100 times stronger than heroin and is significantly cheaper on the black market. Fentanyl is often used in counterfeit versions of prescription pills such as Xanax, Adderall, Percocet and Oxycontin.
As rates of these counterfeit pills rise, it falls on adults to educate and inform younger community members about the risks of substance use and the possibility of fentanyl overdose.
On Tuesday, May 14, the West Linn-Wilsonville School District hosted a community forum on the dangers of fentanyl in the West Linn High School Performing Arts Center.
The community forum featured a screening of “The New Drug Talk Film,” a short documentary by the nonprofit Song For Charlie. Following the screening of the film, expert panelists answered questions about fake pills, fentanyl and how to have a conversation with students.
“The right people are always here to hear the message they need to hear. So, thank you for being here,” said Superintendent Kathy Ludwig before the screening.
“The New Drug Talk” reframes the conversation that a parent would have with their child to face the difficult terrain created by fentanyl.
“In the research that we’ve done, we see that many teens aren't even aware of what fentanyl is,” said Jon Epstein, an advocate with Song for Charlie. “There’s a lot of stigma in culture, movies, the whole dark side of heroin in culture, but not for pills.”
Fentanyl is a highly sensitive substance. Poisoning and overdose can result from inhalation or touch and as little as two millimeters worth of fentanyl can lead to a deadly overdose.
Law enforcement commonly uses a chocolate chip cookie as a metaphor to describe the dangers of counterfeit pharmaceuticals – you can’t be sure of the amount of fentanyl in any portion of a pill.
“Younger people deal with a lot more stressors than their parents had when they were growing up,” said Jennifer Epstein, director of strategic programs at Song for Charlie. “Parents need to acknowledge that and have regular conversations to check in on their kids. When you’re talking about fentanyl, don’t lecture. Have open conversations, ask your child what they know, what they’re seeing. The other thing I think is important is to give them an opportunity to talk about refusal skills if they are faced with a situation where somebody offers them something.”
In the lobby, resources were provided by the local organization Community Living Above and the WLHS Teen Advisory Board. TAB President Jonathan Garcia was one of the panelists.
“It's important that you both educate yourself and your child, or your child educates you,” said Garcia. “Either way, it's important that you both have education on what fentanyl is, where it can be, how easy it is to not see it and how easy it is to get it.”
Garcia also said that it’s important to get educated on the ways to detect an overdose and administer Naloxone, or Narcan, in case of an overdose. Narcan is in the emergency and defibrillator kits at all West Linn-Wilsonville schools.
For more information visit: https://songforcharlie.org/.
“You’re not in this alone. You’ve got pretty much everyone in the school buildings,” said Cheryl Wilson, WLHS’s mental health specialist. “If you have concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re happy to collaborate with you.”
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