Lawn display calls attention to overdose crisis

By Sara Wiercinski

In observance of International Overdose Awareness Day on August 31, First Call installed 443 lawn stakes outside its State Line Road headquarters, representing the lives lost to drug overdose in the Kansas City metro area in 2023.

The stakes were shaped like nasal spray bottles of naloxone, the overdose reversal drug which First Call provides and wants to see as standard issue in first aid kits.

“It’s not new that people with active addictions live in our community, or that young folks are experimenting with drugs,” said First Call President and CEO Emily Hage. “What is new is that we have an incredibly lethal drug supply. Anyone taking street drugs is playing a game of Russian roulette.”

According to a 2023 drug overdose death report by the University of Missouri-St. Louis, 73% of all overdose deaths involved opioids. Among this group, fentanyl was present in almost all (93%) of the cases.

While the number of drug overdose deaths is decreasing in Missouri, the crisis continues to disproportionately affect individuals by race. According to the UMSL study, the overdose mortality rate for black individuals is 2.75 times higher than for white individuals, within every region of the state.

“We need to be paying attention, because the number of overdoses among some groups is accelerating. If we aren’t calling it out and normalizing it, who in Kansas City will?” said Hage.

First Call started in 1958 as part of a national effort by the National Council on Alcoholism. Today, the organization operates independently and provides prevention and recovery resources, regardless of drug of choice, across Jackson, Johnson, Cass and Lafayette Counties.

First Call’s continuum of care includes a harm reduction model, an evidence based approach that seeks to educate drug users and provide access to lifesaving tools, like naloxone and fentanyl test strips. They provide both for free, along with a 24/7 crisis hotline, treatment, prevention efforts, and a variety of community training programs.
Hage says since the display, there has seen an increase in the number of calls made to the crisis line.

“Ultimately that’s our role, to reduce the stigma associated with using drugs. That way, more people can ask for and receive help,” she said.

First Call is hosted a volunteer event to pack harm reduction kits on Saturday, September 14 at their headquarters.

To learn more about First Call and their services, visit firstcallkc.org.