What you don't know can kill you

Saratoga Police Chief Mike Morris and South Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Services (SCWEMS) Director Stayton Mosbey did a presentation on the dangers of narcotics at Tuesday Talks on March 5.

During the presentation both Morris and Mosbey pointed out that fentanyl is the number one drug that is being smuggled across the U.S Border. Because of the conflict of securing the southern border, fentanyl has become easily accessible on the streets.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration’s Anne Milgram, fentanyl is the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered (https://www.dea.gov/fentanylawareness). The National Immigration Forum said that based on information from the U.S Border Patrol and the Office of Federal Operation, both agencies have seized a total of 241,000 pounds of illegal drug substances along the southern border, both at and between ports of entry in 2023.

Morris and Mosbey showed film slides about the dangers of lethal narcotics.

Mosbey pointed out some misconceptions about fentanyl and compared them to the facts of what these drugs can do for medical emergencies.

Mosbey said fentanyl can be both good and bad. He said it is good as far as using it for medical purposes but it can be an addicting dangerous lethal substance that can be found everywhere in the United States.

“Fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine,” Mosbey said. “So when given a milligram of morphine and a microgram of fentanyl it’s about the same strength so it really takes a small amount.”

Mosbey said overdoses can happen when people don’t read the label or someone in the family is unaware about a family member’s drug addiction. He said accidental drug overdoses do happen and people must be informed on any medication they use.

“Most of the overdoses that we go on are traditionally unintentional,” Mosbey said. “These are not people in an alley looking to use drugs and most of these abuse disorders are brought on by trauma or chases where someone is on legal prescription medication and are now addicted, so that is a huge proportion of those.

Mosby also said that medical patients who experience chronic pain are most likely to be addicted to legal or illegal prescription medication that can lead to overdose or death.

According to Mosby at least four deaths have occurred in his service area in the calendar year.

He encouraged anyone to help a friend or family member who is dealing with substance abuse. He mentioned during his lecture there are available state resources such as wyohelp.com where people can look for information they need.

Morris said there are people who suffer from mental illness which is a common reason why drug addiction happens.

“People do not start on lethal substances just to have fun, they are trying to mask or hide something,” Morris said. “Being mentally ill is not a crime and there are some people who have mental illness that do not function properly.”

Morris said that the sale of Fentanyl is not a huge problem in Saratoga although it does happen. Morris said all Platte Valley residents should stay vigilant and, if they see something is out of the ordinary, they are encouraged to contact the Saratoga Police Department.

If you are looking for additional information please visit https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/prevention/substanceabuseandsuicide/opioid-information-wyoming/drug-overdose-data.