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Press Release

U.S. Attorney’s Office Honors Citizens, Policymakers and Officers for Exceptional Efforts to Address New Mexico’s Opioid Epidemic

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico
Fifteen Recognized During Office’s Thirteenth Annual Awards Ceremony

ALBUQUERQUE – The U.S. Attorney’s Office today recognized fifteen individuals for their exceptional efforts to address New Mexico’s opioid epidemic and to attain the goals of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative during its Thirteen Annual Law Enforcement Awards Ceremony in Albuquerque, N.M. Acting U.S. Attorney James D. Tierney commended the following individuals for their important roles in solving the multi-faceted problems caused by the opioid epidemic:

 

Bernalillo County Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins, District 3, and Dr. William Wiese, Chair, Coordinating Committee of the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, were recognized for working with policymakers and local government to develop a coordinated response to the heroin and opioid epidemic through the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative. Commissioner Hart Stebbins has been the driving force behind the Initiative, a multi-sectoral collective impact strategy to align the activities of governmental, non-profit, business and community leaders to strengthen the prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and law enforcement/criminal justice systems in Bernalillo County, and Dr. Wiese serves as the Chair of the Initiative’s Coordinating Committee. Through their efforts, Bernalillo County has taken significant strides in providing support and treatment for individuals struggling with addiction, increasing the availability of naloxone, providing medically assisted treatment (MAT) in its detention center, and raising awareness throughout the County.

 

Albuquerque City Councilor Diane Gibson, District 7, was recognized for her leadership role in promoting public awareness of naloxone, a life-saving medication that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, is easy to administer and safe to use. Councilor Gibson kicked off a public awareness campaign in April 2016, to educate the community about naloxone, and to encourage those who keep narcotic painkillers in their homes or who have family members or friends who are addicted to heroin or prescription painkillers to keep emergency doses of naloxone on hand. Councilor Gibson was a leader in the effort that resulted in legislation making naloxone available in numerous city-owned facilities throughout Albuquerque and requiring that officers of the Albuquerque Police Department be equipped with and trained to administer naloxone.

 

Dr. Joanna Katzman, Medical Director, UNM Pain Clinic, UNM Health Sciences Center, was recognized for her critical role in the enactment of the first-of-its-kind legislation supported by the UNM Health Sciences Center to make a life-saving drug that reverses the effects of opioid overdoses more widely available to New Mexicans. House Bill 370 puts naloxone into the hands of law enforcement officers and makes the medication available to individuals undergoing narcotic replacement therapy and newly released inmates diagnosed with opioid addiction. Dr. Katzman previously played a key role in enactment of legislation requiring continuing medical education (CME) training in the treatment of chronic pain, and participated in developing the mandatory CME program for physicians and physician assistants that ensures that healthcare providers in New Mexico pursue evolving best practices in pain and addiction treatment.

 

Dr. Snehal R. Bhatt, Medical Director of Addictions and Substance Abuse Programs, UNM Psychiatric Center, was recognized for his outstanding efforts to improve access to addiction treatment in communities across New Mexico, exploring novel pharmacological treatments for addictive illnesses, and educating medical students, residents and medical professionals throughout New Mexico and across the country. Dr. Bhatt is part of the UNM Health Sciences Center team collaborating with the Indian Health Services (IHS) to combat the disproportionate misuse of opioids by Native Americans by using telehealth technology to provide training in best practices in chronic pain management to thousands of IHS health care providers.

 

Chief Medical Investigator Kurt Nolte, Medical Investigator Hannah Kastenbaum and Forensic Pathologist Karen Cline-Parhamovich of the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator (OMI), were recognized for their outstanding contributions to combatting New Mexico’ opioid epidemic. OMI is on the front-line of the opioid epidemic. Through the leadership of Dr. Nolte, Dr. Kastenbaum and Dr. Cline-Parhamovich, OMI has emerged as integral information-sharing partner in the HOPE Initiative. OMI is working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in an effort to create a real-time surveillance model for all drug-related deaths. Such model would be the first of its kind and would enable both health and public safety officials to work in lockstep to address this devastating problem.

 

Executive Director Jennifer Weiss-Burke and Prevention Specialist Lou Duran of Healing Addiction in Our Community were recognized for raising community awareness of the dangers of opioid abuse and addiction. HAC is a non-profit organization founded seven years ago by concerned parents and grandparents, and is dedicated to providing education and awareness about the heroin and opiate epidemic that plagues our state. HAC provides the voices for those who have lost their lives to addiction and for those who continue to struggle. Years before the rest of the country realized that the opioid epidemic was looming, Ms. Weiss-Burke, Ms. Duran and HAC were using their personal stories to draw attention to this critically important issue. The HOPE Initiative continues to be inspired by Ms. Weiss-Burke, Ms. Duran and HAC, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is proud to collaborate with them on HOPE’s education and prevention efforts.

Susan McKee, Counseling Manager, Albuquerque Public Schools, was recognized for her outstanding work supervising and coordinating the Crossroads Counselors Program. APS’s seven Crossroads Counselors educate students on substance abuse and help students with drug issues overcome their problems so they may successfully further their lives and educations. Crossroads Counselors all have master's degrees, school counselor licenses and training in substance abuse counseling. Ms. McKee and the Crossroad Counselors support and participate in the prevention and education component of the HOPE Initiative by including Generation Rx, DEA and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in their substance abuse programs, and by providing guidance on HOPE presentations to ensure that they are relevant and relatable to teens and young adults.

Brittany Haggard, a Pharm. D. candidate at the UNM College of Pharmacy and 2016 Chairperson of Generation Rx, was recognized for her outstanding support of and participation in the prevention and education component of the HOPE Initiative. Generation Rx is an educational outreach program of the UNM College of Pharmacy that educates middle school, high school and college students, parents and senior citizens about the dangers of prescription drug misuse. Ms. Haggard and other Generation Rx members collaborated with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and DEA in presenting prevention programs to thousands of students in 2016.

Three law enforcement officers of the Drug Enforcement Administration were recognized for their outstanding support of and participation in the prevention and education component of the HOPE Initiative. Working with Generation Rx and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, they regularly participate in the Albuquerque Public Schools’ Parent Involvement Program (PIP). The PIP provides an alternative to long-term suspensions for students who are caught on campus with drugs or alcohol that requires students and their parents participate in a series of counseling sessions that help students get back on track by focusing on communication, problem solving and the effects of drugs.

 

The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with the DEA, the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC), the Albuquerque Public Schools and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico. The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.

Updated April 27, 2017

Topic
Community Outreach