MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley joined the county’s health department and community leaders Tuesday, as they looked for eight more businesses and organizations to house harm-reduction vending machines.
What You Need To Know
- Milwaukee County leaders are pushing for eight more businesses or organizations to house harm-reduction vending machines
- In 2023, there were 568 confirmed overdose deaths in Milwaukee County
- Desilynn Smith has made it her mission to lower those numbers after losing her husband to fentanyl poisoning
The vending machines are filled with nasal naloxone, commonly referred to as Narcan, along with fentanyl testing strips, medication lock bags and gun locks. Narcan can reverse an opioid overdose.
The goal is to get vending machines in easily accessible, high-traffic locations, such as restaurants, gas stations, hotels and grocery stores.
There are already 11 of these vending machines throughout Milwaukee County.
Milwaukee County will be accepting applications to host a harm-reduction vending machine until March 1.
In 2023 alone, there were 568 confirmed overdose deaths in Milwaukee County, with at least 98 cases pending further toxicology.
Mental health counselor Desilynn Smith has made it her mission to lower those numbers after losing her husband, Hamid Abd-Al-Jabbar, to fentanyl poisoning. He was well-known for helping others, as part of Milwaukee’s office of violence prevention and 414-Life program.
Smith said there needs to be less stigma around — and more resources for — people struggling with substance abuse and their loved ones trying to help them.
“I developed a proposal to DPI [Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction] to get overdose reversal education into Milwaukee Public Schools,” said Smith.
She has also worked to expand access to Narcan. She said it should be available everywhere.
“I found a local bar,” said Smith. “I talked to some other businesses and they got them installed. We got three installed in Milwaukee County.”
She partnered with James Ferguson to get a Narcan box installed at Kingdom Partners Alliance on the city’s North Side. She said the neighborhood is often limited in resources like these.
Ferguson said it has saved lives.
“In the past it has been used several times,” said Ferguson. “It’s rewarding to know that someone could be gone — could be dead — if it weren’t for us having the dispenser here in our location.”
He said all businesses and organizations should welcome the chance to offer Narcan and other life-saving measures.
“It’s not the case that your business is going to become a big drug hang out spot, but what your business does become is a beacon of light in a dark world,” said Ferguson.
Smith said she agrees with that message.
“We’re afraid and want to start breaking that fear down and that stigma around that,” said Smith.
It’s a mission she said she’ll never give up on, to save more lives in honor of her husband.
Learn these signs of an overdose:
If someone is experiencing an overdose, here's how you can help:
MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee County Executive joined the county's health department and community leaders Tuesday as they look for eight more businesses or organizations to house harm-reduction vending machines.
The vending machines are filled with nasal naloxone, commonly referred to as narcan, along with fentanyl test strips, medication lock bags and gun locks.
The goal is to get them in easily accessible, high-traffic locations, like restaurants, gas stations, hotels and grocery stores.
There are already 11 of these vending machines located throughout Milwaukee county.
Milwaukee County will be accepting applications to host a harm-reduction vending machine until March 1st.
In 2023 alone, there were 568 confirmed overdose deaths in Milwaukee County with at least 98 cases pending further toxicology.
Mental health counselor Desilynn Smith has made it her mission to lower those numbers after losing her husband, Hamid Abd-Al-Jabbar to fentanyl poisoning. He was well-known for helping others, as part of Milwaukee’s Office of Violence Prevention and 414-Life program.
Smith said there needs to be less stigma, and more resources for people struggling with substance abuse and the loved ones trying to help them.
“I developed a proposal to DPI to get overdose reversal education into Milwaukee Public Schools,” said Smith.
She also works to expand access to naloxone or narcan. The drug that can reverse an opioid overdose. She said it should be available everywhere.
“I found a local bar,” said Smith. “I talked to some other businesses and they got them installed. We got three installed in Milwaukee County.”
She also partnered with Dr. James Ferguson to get a narcan box installed at Kingdom Partners Alliance on the city’s north side in a neighborhood where all too often resources for getting help, are limited.
Ferguson said it has saved lives.
“In the past it has been used several times,” said Ferguson. “It’s rewarding to know that someone could be gone could be dead if it weren’t for us having the dispenser here in our location.”
He said all businesses and organizations should welcome the chance to offer narcan and other life saving measures.
“It’s not the case that your business is going to become a big drug hang out spot but what your business does become is a beacon of light in a dark world,” said Ferguson.
A message Smith agrees with.
“We’re afraid and want to start breaking that fear down and that stigma around that,” said Smith.
It’s a mission she’ll never give up on, to save more live in honor of her husband.
