Town hall meeting outlines dangers of drug addiction
Posted on Wednesday, May 7, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/News/64903/
LINCOLN — Circuit Court Judge Mary Ann Gunn emphasized prevention as the key to solving Northwest Arkansas’ drug problem.
“ We know what the problem is, ” she said. “ The good thing now is that we know what we can do to stop it. ”
Gunn, who heads the Washington County Drug Court program, served as keynote speaker during a town hall meeting at the Frank Holman Auditorium on Tuesday. The meeting was dubbed “ Methamphetamine: Effects on the Family and Community” and was hosted by members of Project Right Choice, a committee geared toward drug awareness in Northwest Arkansas.
In addition to describing the effects drugs have on people, Gunn discussed ways to prevent drug abuse.
“ Learn about it, ” she said. “ Educate yourself so you know what you’re dealing with. Listen to school offi- cials and talk with your kids. ”
She encouraged parents to seek treatment for children suspected of drug abuse and advised parents to purchase a drug testing kit. She dissuaded parents from blaming themselves or making excuses for their children’s behavior.
“ Talk to school counselors to find out what’s going on, ” she said. “ Form a community coalition. The answer isn’t about judging one another. It’s getting treatment. You can’t do it alone. ”
In addition to delivering first-hand testimony, Gunn served as part of a five-person discussion panel that answered audience questions. Other panel members included: Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder, Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett, forensic nurse Charla Jamerson and Decision Point Manager Doug Frans.
Helder delivered several statistics from a drug and alcohol use survey taken by Washington County Detention Center detainees. The survey revealed that one in five people booked into the detention center tested positive for methamphetamine. Even more startling is that 80 percent of the female detainees admitted to using meth at least once during the past 12 months, Helder said.
“ It’s not enough just to have this information, ” he said. “ We need to address what’s going on. Together perhaps we can come up with ideas to solve it. ”
Project Right Choice Chairman Jess Smith emphasized the impact of meth on businesses. Each year in Washington County, he said, businesses spend approximately $ 24 million due to employee absenteeism and loss of productivity resulting from meth abuse.
“ This is money out of our own pockets, ” Smith said. “ The problem begins with us and so does the solution. ”
For more information about Project Right Choice, contact Judy Cohea, fiscal officer for the Fayetteville Police Department, at 587-3581 or go online to www. projectrightchoice. com. To contact the methamphetamine hotline, call (888 ) 852-4908.