The Foundation for a Drug-Free World fights to educate the public on the dangers of drugs with free booklets and information.

WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES, March 23, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Earlier this month, six young men and one woman on spring break overdosed on what was believed to be fentanyl-laced cocaine at a short-term rental home near Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Five of the seven victims were West Point cadets.

Tragically, two bystanders who performed CPR on two unconscious men went into respiratory arrest themselves because of their exposure simply from performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, according to the city’s police chief. Emergency medical workers administered the anti-overdose medication Narcan, a brand-name version of naloxone, and were able to save them. Two were in critical condition and on ventilators. One man was in stable condition, and the other three were released from the hospital within a day of the incident.

This incident brings into stark view the epidemic of drugs laced with fentanyl. Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic painkiller blamed for the increase in fatal drug overdoses. It is 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine and is supposed to be used only to treat severe pain. It slows a person’s breathing and heart rate, which is behind the fatal overdoses.

The pandemic has not helped to reduce the problem of overdoses. In fact, in the 12-month period that ended in April 2021, more than 100,000 Americans died of overdoses, up almost 30 percent from the 78,000 deaths in the prior year, according to figures from the National Center for Health Statistics. Many of these were related to fentanyl.

Many drug dealers have started to lace cocaine or heroin with fentanyl to make more profit on their drug sales. Due to the incredibly small amount of fentanyl needed to cause a drug “high,” it allows dealers to use less of the more expensive drugs.

The Foundation for a Drug-Free World has been working to educate the public, particularly parents and teenagers, about the dangers of drugs laced with fentanyl.

According to Thalia Ghiglia, faith liaison for the Foundation for a Drug-Free World in Washington, DC, “We’re seeing a fentanyl problem here in our city and surrounding states, just like in the rest of the country. Some people don’t know their drug of choice has had fentanyl added to it. Some don’t think they will be the one to go. Others seek it out for its high. The most tragic are the kids who think they are taking an Oxy, Xanax or an Adderall pill and it turns out to be laced with fentanyl. And just like that, they’re gone.”

Ms. Ghiglia has done repeated training with Narcan to prevent an overdose. Narcan was used with the West Point cadets who had gone into cardiac arrest in Ft. Lauderdale in order to save their lives. Narcan is now available through many health departments for anyone who is trained in its use. Several of the Foundation for a Drug-Free World volunteers in Washington, DC, have been trained in using Narcan and have it available if they run into someone overdosing. DC residents can get Narcan so that if they have friends or relatives who are drug users, they can help if needed. Many other states have programs to distribute Narcan to prevent overdose deaths.

When seeing a suspected overdose, Ms. Ghiglia said to immediately call 911 so help is sent as rapidly as possible.

Ms. Ghiglia said, “While deaths are reported on the news, getting the information to hit home about how deadly fentanyl is to young people requires a different approach. The solution to drug abuse is not a one-size-fits-all. It requires we work together as a community. The solution starts in our own homes, with our own children, having meaningful conversations, getting ourselves educated and then making sure our youth are educated on the facts. We all must pay attention to what is happening in our communities and do something about it.”

Ms. Ghiglia, who has worked with the Foundation for a Drug-Free World since 2007, liaises with prevention advocates, city agencies and others, bringing the truth about drugs to various populations. The Foundation for a Drug-Free World brings vital drug information to people in a simple clear way through its drug education booklets, public service announcements and its award-winning documentary film about 14 different drugs.

Working with other agencies and organizations in the city, Ms. Ghiglia gives drug education lectures virtually to school-age youth, parents, seniors and adults during the pandemic with the goal of bringing more understanding about the dangers of various drugs, especially to at-risk neighborhoods.

There is only one way this can be done, and that is a whole community effort, shoulder to shoulder, supporting city officials and having them, in turn, support the efforts of those working directly in the city’s hot spots. The message needs to be brought on early, often, and with true information to combat the lies of those who are profiting from drug dissemination.

The Foundation for a Drug-Free World is a nonprofit public benefit corporation sponsored by the Church of Scientology and Scientologists all over the world that empowers youth and adults with factual information about drugs so they can make informed decisions and live drug-free. Through a worldwide network of volunteers, the Foundation for a Drug-Free World has gotten 50 million drug prevention booklets distributed. Tens of thousands of drug awareness events have been held in some 180 countries and the Truth About Drugs public service announcements have been aired on more than 500 television stations. These materials and activities have helped people around the world learn about the destructiveness of drugs so individuals can make their own informed decision not to use them.

The Foundation for a Drug-Free World offers all its educational materials for free. Materials can be ordered at www.drugfreeworld.org. The Foundation for a Drug-Free World is an international organization with materials in 22 languages.

Thalia Ghiglia
Drug-Free World
+1 202-667-6404
email us here

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