BERNALILLO COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE) – Bernalillo County will be hosting several educational events as part of its Fentanyl Awareness Week in October.
Bernalillo County teamed up with the City of Albuquerque, Sandoval County, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the New Mexico Department of Health, Albuquerque Public Schools, local law enforcement, and numerous health and addiction treatment organizations to provide 10 public workshops and other outreach to educate the community about the dangers of fentanyl.
Fentanyl Awareness Week begins on Sunday, Oct. 22, with a movie screening of “All the World is Sleeping” at the Hiland Theater, followed by a community discussion. The information sessions begin the next day and run through Monday, Oct. 30, at four locations in Bernalillo County and Sandoval County. The topics are:
- Overdose Education and Naloxone Training
- Navigating Treatment Services
- Emerging Drug Trends
- Correlation between Human Trafficking and Substance Use
- Helping Family Members with Addictions
- Educate & Equip Employers in the Fentanyl Crisis
- Stigma | Unlocking Empathy
- Peer Support, the Gift of Perspective
- Gender-Based Violence & Toxic Masculinity / Trauma Healing
- Native American Cultural Gathering & Letting Go
All sessions are free to the community, but interested people must reserve a seat via Eventbrite online. The workshops will be held at the Bernalillo County Commission Chambers in Albuquerque, the Gateway Center in Albuquerque, the APS Berna Facio Center, and the Sandoval County Chambers in Bernalillo. Click here to view the schedule and learn more about each session
“The impact of this drug is devasting to our community,” said Bernalillo County Manager Julie Morgas Baca. “With an aggressive vigilance towards education and awareness we can combat this deadly trend. That’s the purpose of Fentanyl Awareness Week.”
Fentanyl Awareness Week will conclude with a candlelight vigil on Sunday, Oct. 29, at One Civic Plaza in downtown Albuquerque, beginning at 5 p.m.
In 2021, New Mexico’s drug-overdose death rate was the sixth highest in the nation.
Fentanyl deaths surged after 2019, compounding already high overdose deaths
from methamphetamines and other opioids, according to an Aug. 24, 2023, progress report for the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee.
Department of Health information included in the progress report showed methamphetamine and fentanyl are the most common causes of drug-overdose deaths in New Mexico. NMDOH said 2022 mortality data is still provisional and thus unavailable.
