The co-responder unit from the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Medical Services will focus on mental health calls, welfare checks and involuntary commitments.
Tag: drugs
Showing 1-21 of 32 results
Sunrise co-founder Kevin Mahoney on burnout, mental health and substance use
This summer, Kevin Mahoney decided to return to Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness, which he co-founded and where he will focus on educating the younger generation of peer support specialists.
West Asheville struggles with the impacts of homelessness
Many West Asheville residents say they recognize that addiction is not a crime, yet they’re unsure where to turn for help.
6 takeaways from the downtown safety update
At a Downtown Commission meeting July 14, Assistant City Manager Rachel Wood said that portions of the 60-day downtown safety and cleanliness pilot have transitioned into ongoing services.
Letter: The sad decline of downtown Asheville
“We all know the priorities, and they are past needing to be dealt with.”
Q&A: Justin Shytle on harm reduction, naloxone and recovery
Justin Shytle moved to Asheville when he was 7 years old and remembers a childhood attending Bele Chere and skating around the former Vance Monument. But at 14, their childhood came to an abrupt end when they discovered their father dead from an overdose. The experience “opened the door for my IV drug use and […]
Outreach team seeks to address complex emergency calls
On any day of the week, first responders in Buncombe County might be dispatched to this common scenario: A business owner or a bystander sees a woman on the sidewalk who is agitated, yelling, screaming, and pacing back and forth. Concerned, a bystander calls 911 to get this person help; it’s unclear whether she’s injured, […]
Peer support specialists offer experience, strength and hope
Anton Sluder never thought he’d be excited about his future. “Who was going to help someone like me?” he says. With a felony record and a history of substance use, he had little hope. But when Sluder left prison in September 2021, he was assigned a peer support specialist through Investments Supporting Partnerships in Recovery […]
Community paramedics introduce medication-assisted treatment for opioid use
Buncombe County EMS has a new tool for helping an individual suffering from an opioid overdose: medication-assisted treatment, or MAT.
Q&A with Dr. Tiffany Sauls, psychiatrist providing psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy
Medical school did not teach Dr. Tiffany Sauls anything about psychedelics. “Not at all, other than to stay away,” she says with a laugh. But as she moved into her career as a psychiatrist, Sauls began to wonder about effective alternatives to exclusively treating mental health symptoms with pharmaceuticals. Over time, she became interested in […]
I accuse: Channeling Emile Zola in today’s Asheville
“I am certain the French author would take no offense at a less talented voice borrowing his ‘J’Acuse’ model. What better way to challenge a home community that is similarly darkened by discounted vanities, harms and pretense?”
Community paramedicine program addresses opiod overdoses
Buncombe County experienced a 147% increase in overdose deaths between 2015 and 2017, the most recent period for which data is available from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. According to Emergency Services, Buncombe averages six-to-eight deaths monthly from probable overdoses.
WNC health care providers work to cut opioid prescriptions
Drug abuse changed during the 13 years that Adam McIssac has been working as a drug and alcohol counselor in Asheville. At the beginning, McIssac mostly saw clients who were addicted to methamphetamine. But over time “pills,” including opioids like oxycodone (OxyContin) and hydrocodone (Vicodin), became the main drugs that his clients abused. Opioid abuse […]
Asheville leads the way in new role for pharmacists
Clinical pharmacy gained traction when the Asheville Project, an initiative that addressses chronic health problems in city employees, included pharmacists in medical teams. Now clinical pharmacists have a greater role to play in a variety of medical settings.
Asheville, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll: a look at local concert security
UNLUCKY SEVEN On Saturday, Oct. 25, Sound Tribe Sector 9 began its headlining show at the US Cellular Center without a hitch, but shortly thereafter, security personnel identified seven audience members suffering from drug-induced medical conditions. The seven were quickly transported to Mission Hospital, but over an hour later, the band’s set was stopped and the […]
Former APD evidence room manager pleads guilty to embezzling drugs
Former Asheville Police Department evidence room manager William Lee Smith has pleaded guilty to a federal charge for embezzling $10-30,000 in drugs from the evidence room, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Law enforcement raids Octopus Garden locations ***UPDATED***
Joint raids by Homeland Security, the Asheville Police Department and the Buncombe, Transylvania, Henderson County sheriff’s offices targeted six Octopus Garden locations earlier today, carrying out a search warrant related to “bath salts” amphetamines and synthetic marijuana. (Photo by Max Cooper)
Asheville-Buncombe Drug Commission completes its first annual report
Founded in 2005, the Asheville-Buncombe Drug Commission completed its first annual report. The report, which attempts to give a current look at substance abuse in Buncombe County and provide a plan to address it, was released yesterday, Oct. 15. A link to the report can be found in this post. (Image shown is a screenshot taken of the report itself)
District Attorney Ron Moore keeping evidence room audit results under wraps
The audit of the Asheville Police Department evidence room was completed Jan. 9, but don’t expect the details to go public soon. While Buncombe County District Attorney Ron Moore has told some media that the audit showed that around 200 drug parcels might be missing, the Buncombe County District Attorney’s keeping the results secret, even from city government.
Xpress investigating e-mails containing allegations about Ron Moore
Xpress has received several e-mails forwarded by hacker and writer Barrett Brown, purportedly from a local resident alleging Buncombe County District Attorney Ron Moore’s connection with drug trafficking, a claim Brown has also made. Xpress is investigating the e-mails, which appear to be from a local resident or someone familiar with the area, based on their content.
President, former member of Asheville Outlaws chapter face federal indictment
President and Treasurer Chris Gagner and former member William Davey of the Asheville Chapter of the American Outlaws Association motorcycle club face charges as part of a sweeping federal grand jury indictment of 27 Outlaws. The indictment alleges that the Outlaws “participated in a criminal enterprise that engaged in a wide range of crimes, including attempted murder, kidnapping, assault, robbery, extortion, witness intimidation, narcotics distribution, illegal gambling, and weapons violations.”