Beebe Healthcare Addresses Spike in Drug Overdoses
Beebe Healthcare leaders held a news conference this week to discuss the recent surge in drug overdoses in Sussex County. ER Dr. Paul Cowan provided information on what they have seen in relation to the surge at Beebe Hospital…
The Delaware Department of Health and Social Services participated in yesterday’s press conference about the recent spike in overdoses. DHSS is in coordination with the hospitals, Delaware State Police, and Department of Justice on the situation.
Dr. Cowan talked further about the disturbing trend and how serious the situation is with these patients…
Dr. Cowan says they don’t know at this point exactly what substances or combination of substances these people are using. He encourages partners in the medical field to use Narcan which has been very effective.
Dr. Paul Dr. Sierzenski…Chief Physician Executive for Beebe Healthcare…says one of the concerns and troubling aspects of this set of ingestions is the severity of the condition of patients, significant amount of agents that are聽needed to try to reverse it–(amount of Narcan)–as well as the number of patients –more than 11 to date– that have required mechanical聽ventilation and intubation with ICU stays.
Meanwhile Joanna Champney who serves as the Division Director for the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health at the Delaware Division of Health and Social Services spoke at the news conference yesterday and talked about efforts underway to combat the crisis…
She says that yesterday morning, they delivered another 1300 kits so they can distribute Narcan throughout their healthcare system along with another 200 doses to Beebe Hospital to the ER department specifically. In partnership with Beebe, they are also distributing Narcan at various community outreach events.
