Opioid Crisis in Delaware County: Town Hall Panel Discussion and Screening in Margaretville Thursday

MARGARETVILLE, NY (June 25, 2018) — An award-winning documentary and a blue-ribbon panel will explore the opioid crisis in Delaware County at the MTC Community Room, 61 Academy St. in Margaretville, on Thursday, June 28, from 6 to 8 p.m. -- an event sponsored and presented by Margaretville Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth).

"Confronting the Opioid Epidemic: Face to Face and Through Film" -- a town hall-style meeting, open to the public, free of charge -- will consist of a 20-minute film screening followed by a panel discussion.

The screening will be Part 1 of the documentary "Smacked! Heroin Addiction & Recovery in Rural America," directed by Jessica Vecchione of Hamden. The segment focuses on addiction recovery in Delaware County.

"Smacked!" earned Best Picture at the New Jersey Recovery Film Festival and was named an Official Selection of the New Hampshire Film Festival and of the REEL Recovery Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Panelists for the discussion after the screening are to include:

• Stephen J. Ferrando, MD, Director of Psychiatry, WMCHealth
• David Scarpino , President, Chief Executive Officer, WMCHealth member HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley, which manages Margaretville Hospital
• Allen Nace, LMHC, CASAC, Administrative Director, Community Rehabilitation Services, HealthAlliance
• Debra Mierop, LCSW, Director of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Delaware County
• Peter Volkmann, MSW, Chief, Police Department, Chatham, NY

"At least 10 people in Delaware County are estimated to have died each year since 2016 after overdosing on opioids," Nace says. "That's a big number -- about 25 people from the start of 2016 till now. And five more people will likely die in the county between now and the end of the year unless we do something about it."

Nationally, more than 42,000 people die each year after overdosing on opioids -- that's more than 115 people in the United States every day.

The film and discussion will explore the opioid epidemic's devastation in Delaware County, shed light on the lives of people affected by the epidemic, including families who have lost loved ones and individuals battling opioid addiction, and share experiences of a law enforcement agency that's simultaneously cutting supplies on the streets and helping addicts find places for treatment. The forum will also examine measures Delaware County officials and healthcare providers are taking to mitigate the epidemic, and share ways we can all work to stem the crisis or at least decrease the harm of opioid use so fewer people die and more people struggling with the addiction improve their health outcomes.

For more information, call Margaretville Hospital at 845.586.2631.