Local communities in Roane County and around the world are coming together on Friday, August 30, 2024 to remember those who have died or suffered permanent injury due to drug overdose.
Observed on August 31 every year, International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) seeks to create better understanding of overdose, reduce the stigma of drug-related deaths, and create change that reduces the harms associated with drug use.
This is a multifaceted health crisis with few easy answers, but there is one very simple way for you to support our cause this year. On the eve of International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD), the Roane County Prevention Coalition will be doing our part to raise awareness in Roane County by hosting a brief ceremony of remembrance on the Courthouse Lawn in Spencer, WV at 12:00 PM.
By holding an event this year, the people of Roane County are joining themselves to a global movement for understanding, compassion, and change.
Global overdose rates have skyrocketed in the last 25 years. In 2020, an estimated 284 million people worldwide had used a drug in the past 12 months, a 26 per cent increase from 2010.
Many hundreds of thousands of people around the world lose their lives to overdose each year. In the USA, nearly 105,000 Americans lost their lives to overdose in 2023, the third consecutive year of more than 100,000 overdose deaths. An estimated 1442 of those deaths were in West Virginia in 2023.
“By coming together to remember them, we stand together to say that more needs to be done to end overdose in our community,” said WVU Extension Agent and Roane County Prevention Coalition President, Brandy Brabham.
“We encourage members of the community with lived experience to come to our event and to stand in solidarity with the men and women who have been personally affected by overdose.”
International Overdose Awareness Day is convened by Penington Institute, an Australian not-for-profit. This year for the first time, they have announced a campaign theme: Together we can.
“With our theme for 2024, “Together we can”, we’re highlighting the strength of coming together and standing in support of those connected to the tragedy of overdose. While every individual action matters greatly, coming together as an international community creates a powerful collective action.”
A full list of the IOAD 2024 events currently planned around the world can be found at: https://www.overdoseday.com/events-2024/ #
MEDIA CONTACT: Brandy Brabham – brandy.brabham@mail.wvu.edu/ 304-927-0975
International Overdose Awareness Day is an initiative of the public health not-for-profit organization Penington Institute, based in Melbourne, Australia (penington.org.au) – email: info@overdoseday.com; please find more information about the overdose crisis at overdoseday.com.
