A group of central Kentuckians is working to reduce drug addiction in their region. The Madison County Agency for Substance Abuse Policy sponsored a community forum on the issue last week in Richmond. ASAP Board Chair Jerian Petry says a state trooper spoke to the group about trends in alcohol use. "Inhaling it or breathing it in, instead of just drinking it,” said Petry. “There's also other avenues; kids are doing things like putting alcohol directly into their eyes to basically feel the sensation earlier."
Petry works at The Ridge, a Lexington facility that provides psychiatric and chemical dependency services to children, adolescents, and adults. She says treatment remains the most pressing need to address addiction. "There's always gonna be a new drug or a new trend or something out there that folks are going to want to do, so you have to offer them treatment in order for them to combat that addiction because they're not gonna be able to just up and quit on their own," added Petry.
Petry says forum participants also heard about Madison County's 'High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area' designation. The central Kentucky community has been awarded federal funds to work to do more to reduce drug trafficking. Petry says the forum attracted social workers, school officials, and those in law enforcement.?
