Melrose Raises Flag for Overdose Awareness
Written and Photographed By Ellen Putnam
Left to Right: Emily Hatchouel, Jessica Lanneville, Lisa Passacantilli, Nick McLeod, and Mayor Jen Grigoraitis
Last Friday, Melrose City Hall hosted a flag raising event in recognition of Overdose Awareness. The event recognized the reality of substance abuse problems in our community, honored those who have been lost to substance abuse, and reflected on the possibility and hope of recovery.
According to the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Drug Abuse, in 2021, an estimated 2.5 million people in the U.S. had abused opioids in the past year, and nearly 107,000 people died of a drug overdose, with 75% of those deaths involving opioids.
While substance abuse may not always be visible in Melrose, it is a problem in our community just as it is in many others. Mayor Jen Grigoriatis shared that Melrose saw six opioid-related deaths just in the past year, and 100 opioid-related emergency room visits.
In recent years, the city’s Department of Health and Human Services has expanded its efforts to address substance abuse issues in our community. This is funded by a multibillion dollar settlement paid out by drug companies that were accused of encouraging the overprescription of opioids, resulting in a nationwide opioid crisis. 60% of the funds that Massachusetts receives go to statewide programs, and 40% to municipalities. Melrose is expected to receive a total of $800,000 in settlement funds between 2022 and 2038, which may be used for expenditures related to the opioid crisis, including prevention, harm reduction, and recovery.
Emily Hatchouel, who is aa Public Health Specialist for the City of Melrose, has been leading the city’s efforts to make Narcan/Naloxone, which can save the life of a person who has overdosed on opioids, free and easily available in multiple locations throughout the community. The City’s Department of Health and Human Services has been training community members on how to use Narcan/Naloxone, also using the funds from the opioid settlement. The Department of Health and Human Services has also been using the opioid settlement funds to sponsor programs aimed at preventing substance abuse among youth in our community.
Melrose resident Jessica Lanneville, who works at the Bridge Recovery Center in Malden, and Nick McLeod and Lisa Passacantilli, who are recovery coaches in Melrose, spoke about their own experiences with addiction and recovery, and how each of them is now able in their work to use their worst moments to help support others who are going through recovery.
They also spoke about how breaking the cycle of stigma and shame around addiction can help promote recovery. “Events like this matter,” said Lanneville. “It sends the message that no one has to go through this alone.”
