In the Miami County Jail we have the whole gamut of prisoners. We house those who are awaiting trial and those who are sentenced to a certain term of incarceration by the Courts. There are those prisoners who are suicidal, with mental issues, chemical dependencies both alcohol and drugs and those who aspire to nothing but being criminals. The biggest majority of my time is taken up by those who have mental health and chemical dependencies.

All are perfectly capable and do attack the Correction Officers at the drop of a pin, the perceived insult or not being granted what they believe they should be allowed to have. A mental health prisoner may try suicide or harming themselves when they see another inmate get the attention of a CO. A prisoner withdrawing from heroin may want an extra blanket or to be allowed to take a shower every hour.

Only medical, the jail nurse or doctor can order a second blanket. Too many hot showers can cause high blood pressure and can make the inmate more sick. That and a person taking a shower every hour interrupts the sleep of the other 50 inmates.

We see the inmates come back time after time and they consider it a vacation from drugs. It is an opportunity to clean their body of the drugs, gain some of the 50 pounds they lose when out doing drugs and renew old friendships. Then when they are released, they go about the business of stealing to buy drugs and return to the addict’s life.

With all the drug overdoses in the news of late, the addicts are mixing heroin with fentanyl, and elephant tranquilizer. Now we have an available shot, commonly called Narcan, which will counter affect the drugs and bring the addict back to life. Some of the addicts get mad for interrupting the most fantastic high they have ever experienced.

In an effort to fight the drug overdose epidemic, the law enforcement agencies, mental health and chemical abuse recovery agencies are combining to get the proper treatment these addicts and mental health sufferers need. At the jail we now have a pamphlet with the name and contact information for 27 agencies in the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services coverage area.

The agencies listed include those who treat alcoholics, drug addicts and mental health patients. Some are free, some work on a sliding scale fee based on income and some require insurance. Each agency has a location and phone number as well as web page.

Alcoholics Anonymous has numerous locations, dates and times throughout the whole tri-county area. The same for Al-Anon, Narcotics Anonymous and FOA (Families Of Addicts). Then there are those that provide in-house recovery services for mental health and addictions. There are residential services available on a referral basis. Also in the pamphlet are doctors who treat the various patients as well as full service hospitals and rehabilitation centers.

So if you or a loved one is in need of some sort of service I have described here there are various options of finding out how and who to get in touch with. If you feel it is to the point of being a crisis in someone’s life, even a friend or family member you can call the 24-hour Crisis Hotline for Shelby, Miami and Darke Counties at 1-800-351-7347. They can refer you to the proper agency or may even send a crisis counselor out.

Another agency is the Miami County Recovery Council in Troy at 937-335-4543. Shelby County has Shelby County Counseling Center at 937-492-8080. Or you can stop by the Miami County Sheriff’s Office, Troy Police, Piqua Police, Tipp City Police during normal business hours and obtain a copy of the pamphlet.

While I am not a bleeding heart liberal, as I still believe drug abuse is a crime which makes me “Old School” in the jail, I do believe there are those who could benefit from after-incarceration mental health treatment to get their mind in tune with their newly cleaned out bodies. Then there are those who “Enjoy” the drug life and will not or are not ready to fight the habit or mental illness. This pamphlet is a good start to informing the public on what help is available.

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