Morgen Irwin

Suicide Prevention

Help Save a Life – Suicide Can Be Prevented

 

August 2014 – This week we lost a talented and kind-hearted Actor. Based on reports Robin Williams struggled with severe depression and took his life by suicide.  Suicide is preventable and we all have a role to play to end the tragedy of suicide. As a community we can do more to prevent such tragic deaths through greater awareness of mental health issues, warning signs, effective interventions and treatment.

Did you know that suicide is a top 10 reason for death, every 13 minutes someone dies from Suicide in the United States?  90% of people who complete suicide are clinically depressed or have a diagnosable mental health disorder.  At CFLR we hope that out of this tragedy there will be a close look at the disparity of treatment for those who struggle with mental illness as those who have diabetes or heart disease.

For more information and to get involved with suicide prevention efforts locally, please consider joining the suicide prevention coalition by calling CFLR, Inc. at 315-733-1709 and speak with Judith H. Reilly, or email her at jreilly@cflrinc.org. Or visit us at whenthereshelpthereshope.com. CFLR, Inc.’s next suicide prevention coalition meeting will be August 19th from 8:30AM to 10AM at our Utica office (502 Court Street, Suite 401).

Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. is proud to be the area’s leading expert for advocacy, prevention, counseling, training and recovery services. As a community partner, it is important to us that we continue spreading the message of help and hope to our area and with those whom we work.

For Crisis call: MCAT – Mobile Assessment Crisis Team – 732-6228 locally

Learn more about the warning signs of suicide 

New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) Safety Plan App

Posted by Morgen Irwin in News

CFLR leads the Oneida County Opiate Task Force

CFLR, Inc. is proud to lead the Oneida County Opiate Task Force.  Over the past several months CFLR, Inc. has teamed up with local community members to come together, discuss how we can make a difference in our community, and develop strategies to fight the epidemic locally. Some of these partners include the local police departments, Department of Mental Health, treatment providers, local court system, individuals and more. The Task Force collaboration efforts are specifically focused on addressing and the current Opiate problem that is impacting our community.  If you would like to get involved with the Opiate Task Force please contact Judith H. Reilly, Community Programs Director at Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. for more details.  Judy can be reached at 315.768.2641 or jreilly@cflrinc.org.

Posted by Morgen Irwin in News

Plan to Get Home Safely This Fourth of July

Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. Urges You to Make a Plan to Get Home Safely This Fourth of July.

 

If you drive drunk, you not only put your life and the lives of others at risk, you could face a DUI arrest.  The average DUI costs $10,000, making it not only a potentially deadly decision, but also difficult to recover financially.  During the Fourth of July 2012 holiday period, 46% of the young drivers killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes were alcohol-impaired.  According to Tom Giruzzi, Oneida County STOP-DWI Coordinator, “the New York State Police, County Sheriff and municipal law enforcement agencies will collaborate across the state and will be out in force in this coordinated effort to aggressively target those who put lives in danger.”  Arrested drunk drivers face jail time, the loss of their driver licenses, higher insurance rates, and dozens of other unanticipated expenses from attorney fees, fines and court costs; simply put, it’s not worth it!  Whether you’ve had way too many or just one too many, it’s never worth the risk to drive impaired.  There’s always another way home.

 

What should you do?

  • Plan a safe way home before the fun begins;
  • Before drinking, designate a sober driver;
  • If you’re impaired, use a taxi, call a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation so you are sure to get home safely;
  • If you see a drunk driver on the road, don’t hesitate to contact 911 and report them; and
  • Remember, Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.  If you know someone who is about to drive or ride while impaired, take their keys and help them make other arrangements to safely get to where they are going.

 

For more information about CFLR, Inc.’s Drinking Driver Program, to get involved in efforts to combat underage drinking or any of the programs of Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc., please contact Judith H. Reilly, Community Programs Director, at 315.733.1709 or jreilly@cflrinc.org.

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As a community partner, it is important to Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. to continue spreading the message of hope to our area; especially, as we transform the lives of individuals and families by providing help and hope through advocacy, prevention, counseling and training.

Posted by Morgen Irwin in News

Griffo Applauds Governor for Signing Heroin Legislation

Posted by Jude Seymour on Monday, June 23rd, 2014

UTICA – Sen. Joseph A. Griffo, a member of the Senate Task Force on Heroin & Opioid Addiction, today thanked Gov. Andrew Cuomo for signing a package of bills designed to combat heroin legislation.

“This is a testament to teamwork,” said Griffo, R-Rome. “The Senate Task Force lead the way, soliciting input from more than 200 experts in health care and public safety who interact with heroin users. We developed a package of bills that received overwhelming support in the Senate and, thankfully, our Assembly colleagues agreed to most of the bills. The governor’s quick action in signing this legislation demonstrates our shared commitment to tackling this problem right away.”

“At the Center for Family Life & Recovery, our goal is to create a community mindset that encourages and sustains recovery from addiction,” said Cassandra Sheets, chief executive officer of the organization. “At Senator Griffo’s forum, I spoke about several major components of that ongoing initiative, including proper education of our children, better inter-agency and community coordination as well as more wraparound support for those recovering from addiction after treatment. I’m thankful that the senators took my input seriously and incorporated those elements into their final package. I thank the governor for signing these bills today.”

Griffo hosted a forum April 15 in Utica, where a dozen professionals in the fields of addiction treatment, recovery and law enforcement offered frank testimony about rising trends in heroin abuse. The group also spoke about the need for additional public education, to improve access to treatment programs, to increase communication and the flow of information among state agencies that deal with addicts, among other things.

That feedback was incorporated into the bills signed Monday.

They include new laws that will enable individuals requiring treatment, but who are denied, to continue receiving care while they appear their case. Insurers will be required to cover appropriate treatment for those addicted to drugs.

The state will create a new program, aimed at lowering costs, that will divert patients who do not need in-hospital detox to appropriate facilities or services. This program would provide alternative, short term community based treatment.

In addition, the new laws will help decrease relapses and improve life outcomes by providing services to addicts for up to nine months after they’ve successfully completed a treatment program. This case management service would encompass education, legal, financial, social, child care and other supports.

The state’s Office of Alocholism and Substance Abuse Services will also begin a new public education campaign aimed at children, their parents, health care providers and others. The effort will focus on the risks associated with opioid abuse, the telltale signs of addiction and what local resources are available for those that need help. The state Education Commissioner will also be updating the state’s curriculum on drug abuse every three years so students are given the most up-to-date information.

Griffo has written letters to the 21 police departments in his district, encouraging them to apply for funds for training officers to use and to carry naloxone, a powerful medicine that reverse some of the most harmful effects of opioid overdose. The state Attorney General’s Office is accepting applications through Sept. 1.

Legislation signed Monday will also allow pharmacists to dispense the medicine to anyone who needs it.

Finally, the new laws include introducing penalties and greater police power to reduce the distribution of controlled substances. It creates the crime of “fraud and deceit related to a controlled substance,” to crack down on “doctor shopping.” It also adds a new crime and increases penalties for another associated with pharmacists and practitioners selling controlled substances.

Posted by Morgen Irwin in News

Heroin and Opiates – How CFLR is Making a Difference

April 10, 2014 by Judith H. Reilly

In response to a recent article on Heroin, I’d like to take a few minutes to tell you how Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. is making a difference in our community and transforming the lives of individuals and families, who need it most.

Approximately half of heroin users start out by abusing prescription painkillers; they are frequently the gateway to Heroin. More people die from painkiller overdose yearly than Heroin and Cocaine combined. Heroin is unforgiving, and the Mohawk Valley is not immune. Data collected by the Oneida County Department of Mental Health from our county’s outpatient treatment programs for 2013 reflected 1,738 individuals were admitted for drug treatment and about 25% were listed with opiates, as primary drug of choice. Since 2011, local figures have increased about 15%.

CFLR, Inc.’s Prevention Council staff are members of the Oneida County Alcohol and Drug Subcommittee. It is a platform that brings providers together to work collaboratively on substance abuse issues. CFLR, Inc. is a partner on the Oneida County Opiate Task Force, which has been formed to address the ongoing Opiate epidemic. The Task Force will collaborate in order to address and tackle the current Opiate problem that is impacting our community. CFLR, Inc.’s is the lead agency for the Oneida County Professional Training Coalition and works diligently to prepare community professionals for the issues and trends that they face.

CFLR, Inc. is proud to partner with the City of Rome’s Police Department to not only educate our community through prevention messaging, but also to provide support for those who are fighting addictions, and are on their recovery journey. In 2013, CFLR, Inc. collaborated with Communities That Care to purchase a RXMedReturn Unit, made possible through a grant from the United Way of Rome & Western Oneida County, to be housed in the Rome Police Station; through this effort hundreds of pounds of prescription medication was safely disposed of. Currently, CFLR, Inc. is working with the Department to address the Heroin/Opiate epidemic. In 2013 alone over 15,000 bags of Heroin were seized. In addition, police are reporting an extremely heavy increase in shoplifting among users, who are struggling to support their addiction.

HOPE is a Heroin Overdose Prevention Education program. The goal of this program is to reduce the incidence of Heroin abuse and overdoses through prevention and education efforts directed toward recovery. The overall mission is that this will provide a powerful message and educate all participating citizens to make good decisions that will positively influence the outcome of their lives.

In the end, even if you personally don’t know of someone affected by Heroin, you are being affected by it. CFLR, Inc. knows that together, we will make the changes necessary in our community. Here are four concrete steps that you can take to get involved: 1.) Look for information about the Heroin and Opioid Forum being held in Utica on Tuesday, April 15th from 5:00P.M. – 7:00P.M.; 2.) Get involved in CFLR, Inc.’s Project Recover a systematic, community-wide support network for individuals in all stages of recovery from substance use, mental health, and behavioral Issues and their families throughout Herkimer and Oneida Counties that is built upon S.A.M.H.S.A.’s four pillars of recovery: Home, Health, Purpose and Community; 3.) Join Communities That Care and get involved; 4.) Frequent www.whenthereshelpthereshope.com and review the Oneida County Professional Training Coalition schedule to become more informed.

For more information, or to get involved, please contact CFLR, Inc. directly at (315) 733 – 1709.

Posted by Morgen Irwin in News