MILWAUKEE — A new report released by the state shows a correlation between the pandemic and a rise in drug overdoses.
The numbers featured in the Journal Sentinel found a 47% increase in suspected opioid overdoses during the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“I’d say three to six months after the lockdowns came about there was a definite increase,” said Peter Brunzelle, executive director at WisHope Recovery. “As far as putting a measuring stick on it, it’s a little difficult besides seeing how many more people need help. The waiting lists are definitely getting longer and longer.”
“Yes there is an increase in numbers, but that’s only part of it,” said Laurie Lessard, director for residential programming at Lutheran Social Services. “Most of us went to 50% capacity back in March of 2020, so we were only able to serve half as many residents.”
On top of the added isolation, the increased safety protocols also made it challenging for those seeking treatment.
“Every roadblock seems insurmountable,” Lessard said. “Being told ‘yes we can take you, but you have to make this appointment, and go get this COVID test first, and you have to do this, and you have to do that, here’s how it’s going to be,’ it reinforces their disorder. They’re thinking this is too much I can’t do it.”
She says those who didn’t seek treatment during the last 18 months are showing accelerated risks and needs from their disorder after not getting help for so long.
While the ability to serve those struggling with substance abuse has improved in the last year, Lessard says it’s still not quite back to pre-pandemic levels.
“We can’t take people in that quickly because of quarantine beds,” she said. “It’s still slower than usual, but we are very close to being back at full capacity to treat people.”
“We had to almost cut our census in half,” Brunzelle said. “We’ve increased it up to about 65% at this point, but with the Delta variant and other things floating around we still want to take those heavy precautions to ensure the safety of all.”
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