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In this very honest conversation, Greg talks to Darryl Strawberry who opens up about his life struggles which began in early childhood and reached into his highly successful baseball career. He was suspended three times for drug abuse during his 17 years in the league, but since then, he has walked the challenging road to recovery and turned his life around. He shares with Greg his journey involving an alcoholic father who abused him physically and emotionally before leaving when Darryl was 13, and the consequential pain he carried inside. Through his experiences, he is able to offer tremendous insight and clarity about the recovery process. Greg learns about the key role supportive people play in the lives of those trying to overcome addiction. “It takes people to help people,” Darryl explains. He also details why recovery can’t happen overnight, and how the compassion of others is pivotal. Part of his recovery process involved bringing faith into his life and achieving growth through the church’s teaching

In this new episode, Greg talks to Barbara Marsh, the assistant to the health commissioner in Dayton and Jody Long, the director of behavioral health treatment and support services for the Montgomery County Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Services. They discuss how their two respective departments came together to form COAT in 2016, which has proven to be a very effective and comprehensive program that’s preventing deaths at the hands of the opioid epidemic. Join Greg as he learns how this program was established and what it means to the community it serves. They explore the collective impact model and the national incident management system (NIMS) which guides responses to incidents and emergencies. They describe their work with 60 community partners/stakeholders who all came to the table because every sector has a vested interest since they all have been affected by the overdose problem.

In today’s podcast, Greg talks with Kimberly Fraser, Executive Director, Lake County (Ohio) Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board, and Jessie Baginski, Ph.D., President/CEO, Leadership Lake County. Both guests have been touched by the opioid crisis, with family members falling prey to its draconian outcomes. They are overseeing Operation Resolve, a unique program designed to help fight the opioid crisis by reaching out to employers and offering them resources with which they can engage their workforce. The educational information they provide relates to drug abuse, addiction and where to find help. Operation Resolve maintains a help line at 440.350.2000 or 440.918.2000, M-F, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. EST. The line is available to help anyone impacted directly and indirectly by addiction.

Greg learns about a new Drug Enforcement Agency program, DEA360, in an illuminating conversation with Sean Fearns, the chief of community outreach. He describes how the programming takes a comprehensive approach to breaking the cycle of drug trafficking, drug violence and drug abuse. DEA360 was first introduced in 2015 with a pilot program in Pittsburgh. Join Greg as he also learns about the pilot programs that DEA360 has introduced in key cities nationwide where the opioid crisis is most severe. He also explores Operation Prevention, a mission to educate students about the true impact of opioids and to kick start conversations in the home and classroom. Resources are available at GetSmartAboutDrugs.gov and at 360.DEA.gov

In the second of a two-part conversation, Greg interviews Judge Craig Hannah who sits on the bench in the nation’s only Opioid Court in the 8th Judicial District in Buffalo, NY. A former addict himself, now 18 years sober, Hannah details the role and efficacy of his courtroom’s daily involvement in addicts’ lives. Greg also speaks with the court’s case managers Brooke Crouse and Megan Carroll, as well as with Janet Gaskin, a case worker from Save the Michaels of the World, Inc., a resource for all aspects of addiction. Also, he speaks with Kevin, a participant in this program. Join Greg as he hears about a day in the life at Opioid Court, as shared by case managers who become involved during the first hours of sobriety where they determine what’s needed to manage each addict’s situation.

In the first of a two-part conversation, Greg interviews Jeff Smith, a leader who has affected significant change in the process by which cases belonging to those addicted to opioids are handled. Driven by the understanding that opioid addiction has dramatically different outcomes compared to any other drug use, with rapidly lethal results foremost among them, Smith describes how he has established a better approach. It involves shortening the legal process and engaging with users immediately upon arrest. By connecting them with providers and treatment options tailored for their needs, their lives can be put in turnaround. Hear Greg track the steps involved with this new approach and share in his discovery of how it has served more than 200 people in the nine months since it began. Discover the difference Smith’s new thinking is making and how it is successfully meeting the educational, vocational and counseling needs of this at-risk population.

In today’s podcast we revisit Greg’s interview with Daniel Meloy, the previous Director of Public Safety for Colerain Township in Hamilton County, Cincinnati, Ohio. During his time as the Director of Public Safety for Colerain County, Daniel was able to lead his community to a 35% decrease in overdoses and create the first Quick Response Team (QRT) – a group that has been utilized in many other communities since this episode was first released. Listen to the podcast to discover how the work Daniel and his team were doing led them to partnering with The Community Recovery Project and utilizing what they called their Recovery Resource Packets.

In today’s podcast we revisit Greg’s interview with Washington Post reporter Nicole Lewis. In 2017, Nicole wrote an article in response to President Trump’s claims that drugs would stop pouring into the country if a border wall was built. She begged to differ. “A wall won’t stop them – flat out, wrong.” Listen to the podcast to discover how the issue of drugs finding their way into the U.S. will not be solved by the construction of any variety of border wall and what can be done instead.

Greg interviews Dr. Alan Goodwin, a psychologist from Palm Beach, Florida that has spent decades in the field of addiction treatment. Dr. Goodwin recently appeared in a New York Times article titled “A Doctor with a Phone and a Mission,” about his work investigating rehab facilities in Florida, who are part of the increasingly competitive, $35 billion drug and alcohol treatment center industry. Listen to the podcast to discover what else Dr. Goodwin discovered through these calls and what can be done to combat the hard sell tactics many big businesses use in running their treatment centers.

Greg interviews Daniel Denvir, a Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Fair Punishment Project and the host of the podcast The Dig. Daniel recently wrote an article titled “These Pharmaceutical Companies are Making a Killing off the Opioid Crisis,” which discusses the price hike in Naloxone and how companies are exploiting the demand for profit. Listen to the podcast to discover what can be done to address the problems with price gouging to make life-saving drugs like Naloxone accessible.

Greg interviews Dr. Sandra Block, a Medical Director of the Adult Pediatric Sleep Center in Buffalo Medical Group in Buffalo, New York and the author of What the Opioid Epidemic Looks Like on the Screen of a Brain Scan. Dr. Block has been practicing neurology for 20 years and recently noticed a difference in the EEGs coinciding with the rise of the opioid epidemic. Listen to the podcast to discover what causes these changes in the brain and if they can be reversed for patients who have suffered an overdose.

Greg interviews Dr. Scott Weiner, the Attending Emergency Physician and Director of B-CORE at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts . Dr. Weiner started B-CORE, short for Brigham Comprehensive Response and Education program, with the aim of creating an umbrella and uniform standard for the treatment of substance use disorder within the hospital. Listen to the podcast to discover some of the future initiatives Dr. Weiner and B-CORE hope to put in place - like prescriber benchmarking and a Bridge Clinic where people can go even without an appointment to get started on the road to longer term treatment.

Greg interviews Dr. Ann DiFrangia, a board certified physician, specializing in the treatment of substance use disorder with Akron General Hospital. Since 2011, Dr. DiFrangia has seen a rise in neo-natal mortality rates, an increase in disabilities due to infection, and sky-rocketing death rates because of the opioid epidemic sweeping Ohio. Listen to the podcast to discover what Dr. DiFrangia has discovered to be the most successful treatments for those suffering from substance use disorder.

Greg interviews Mike DeWine, the Attorney General of Ohio and staff members Alisha Nelson, Community Outreach Specialist and LeeAnne Cornyn, the director of the Children’s Initiative . In 2016 alone, 4,050 Ohio residents died as a result of unintentional drug overdoses - a 32.8% increase from 2015. Attorney General Mike DeWine has developed a 12 point plan titled Recovery Ohio in the hopes of decreasing these ever-growing numbers. Listen to the podcast to discover how this plan and the other points in Recovery Ohio are working towards a fully coordinated system to provide aid to those affected by the opioid epidemic.

Greg interviews Nan Whaley, the Mayor of the City of Dayton, Ohio. Out of the top 10 cities in the U.S. marred by the opioid epidemic, three are in Ohio and one of the top ones is Dayton. Since her election, Mayor Whaley has worked to aggressively combat the crisis sweeping the state and affecting her community. Listen to the podcast to discover how the City of Dayton has also filed a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical companies responsible for the spread of opiates throughout the community

Greg interviews Rebecca Crowder, the Executive Director of Lily’s Place. Lily’s Place is a Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) facility that provides observational, therapeutic, and pharmalogical care to infants affected by prenatal drug usage. Listen to the podcast to discover how Rebecca’s local community has started mandatory drug screening for every mother entering the hospital to give birth. And how this paired with an NAS facility like Lily’s Place is helping both infants and parents alike.

Greg continues his interview with Freddy Negrete, world renowned tattoo artist, Hollywood studio artist, and the co-author of Smile Now, Cry Later – an autobiography, co-authored with Steve Jones, about growing up in L.A. and the draw as a child towards both the empowerment of tattoos and the belonging that came with joining a gang. Listen to the podcast to discover how this arrest coupled with the continued complications from his Congestive Heart Failure led Freddy to make a permanent change and push for treatment.

Greg interviews Freddy Negrete, a Hollywood studio artist and the co-author of Smile Now, Cry Later – an autobiography he wrote with his good friend Steve Jones about growing up in L.A. and the draw as a child towards both the empowerment of tattoos, but the belonging that came with joining a gang. Listen to the podcast to discover how Freddy moved on from this experience into more serious substance abuse and then back out again.

Greg interviews Ilene Shapiro, the County Executive of Summit County. In October, Ilene declared a state of emergency over the opioid epidemic, enabling the utilization of the Emergency Operations Command Center in downtown Akron to serve as a communication and coordination hub. Listen to the podcast to discover how this state of emergency declaration has led to a lot of changes in Summit County that have allowed Ilene and her team to better utilize resources to help those suffering from substance use disorder.

Greg continues his interview with Clay Stamp, the Executive Director of the Opioid Operational Command Center in Maryland. Established under the Interagency Heroin and Opioid Coordinating Council in January 2017, the Opioid Operational Command Center works to collect, analyze, and facilitate data-sharing with State and local sources to create better strategies in their fight against the opioid epidemic. Listen to the podcast to discover how Maryland’s position on the opioid epidemic as a public health crisis is not only allowing them to create better treatment centers, but to better address the laws holding those who have suffered from substance use disorder back.