Heroin is an addictive drug that currently is making news all over the Midwest. Counties in southern Indiana have instituted a needle-exchange program and are facing an HIV outbreak. While local officials do not expect a needle-exchange program to be needed here, Kosciusko County is far from immune to the drug. Kosciusko County Drug Task Force members said that heroin has been a problem in the county since the early ’90s. The issues with heroin waned for a while but have come back full force in recent years. Meth and prescription drugs are still extremely dangerous and just as prevalent as ever in the county, and heroin is steadily rising among the ranks, according to Syracuse Police Chief Tony Ciriello. Heroin is not replacing the use of the other two drugs, which make up the most-abused drugs of the county, but it is slowly joining them. The reason? Heroin is easy to get and it’s easy to do. Meth comes with the risk of fire, explosion, physical scars and smells that give away its presence. Prescription pills are difficult to acquire and are expensive. Heroin is a cheaper alternative that is easily acquired, can be hidden, and has no risk of blowing up a house. Heroin in this county is coming from Chicago to South Bend, Ciriello said. Wabash County has had a heroin issue longer than Kosciusko, so dealers going through Warsaw to get to Wabash have started working here. Drug Task Force officers say there have been at least six overdoses of heroin resulting in death this year in Warsaw, and several other OD victims survived. Heroin is a problem here, and it affects the user, their family and the community, according to multiple Drug Task Force and Warsaw police officers and representatives of the Bowen Center. A Drug Task Force officer said, “It’s hard to make users care. A lot of times they have children in the home, jobs they are responsible for. Would you feel safe if they changed your oil while high, or made your food?” Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department has set up ways to help users get off the drug as well as those around them. There is a tip hotline available to call. Road units have been trained in drug-use signs and are the most effective at apprehending drug users. The Kosciusko County Drug Task Force is being trained on the use of Narcan, a medicine used to counteract heroin overdosing. While the Task Force knows their role is to “keep the street clean and throw offenders in jail,” there is an alternative program that those who struggle with heroin use can go to get effective help. Araceli Grant, assistant director of addiction services at the Bowen Center, runs programs specifically designed to help addicts. Bowen has an Access Center that helps first-time clients get into these programs. Clients then meet with substance abuse counselors who have specific training or are licensed in that particular area. Counselors are present in most of the Bowen Center facilities. Depending on clients’ addictions, they may be sent to detox centers in the area. While many centers do require insurance, others accept cash payments, which can make the process much easier. Many users get to the point where they cannot keep a job, so having insurance is difficult. If detox isn’t needed, Bowen puts users in an intensive outpatient program. This program runs five to six months and teaches users skills to stay sober and behave well, puts them into Narcotics Anonymous classes and offers counseling for their families. Heroin users typically have other issues in their lives, so there will often be mental health, family and other types of counseling used in the program, Grant said. There is a program that mirrors Narcotics Anonymous that teaches the family how to support the addict, specifically the partner. Bowen Center counselors also provide information on food banks, church support groups and other resources that could possibly help out someone in need. “We connect them with what they need,” said Grant. Classes are offered that address addiction behaviors, criminal thinking and other typical problems for their clients. Grant said, “We are here to help … Whatever it is, heroin, any other drugs, we will connect you with the resources you need.”
