What Do You Do When You See the Fentanyl Fold In Pittsfield?

I was walking down North Street the other day and there was a woman on the curb who did not look right. Bent over. Cigarette burning down, silent. That look people call the fentanyl fold.

So I asked on the air what a regular person is supposed to do. Walk past? Say something? Leave her alone?

I put that question to Dr. Jennifer Michaels, medical director at The Brien Center in Pittsfield during our on air chat the other day. Her answer was simple. Look at the person. Are they breathing? What color is their skin? Do they answer if you say, loud, are you okay? You do not have to touch them.

Deciding whether or not to administer Narcan

If they do not answer and you carry Narcan, give it. Dr. Michaels said Narcan will not hurt someone who is just asleep. The worst you get is a wet nose. Call 911. Stay if you can.

We also talked about the part nobody likes saying out loud. A lot of folks have no patience left. I understand that. If you live or work downtown and people are passed out, dropping needles, or using the street like a bathroom, it wears you down. That does not mean the person on the curb is a bad person. Dr. Michaels said it is a disease that took over. The first time might be a choice. After that it can hook you in a week. Then you cannot stop without feeling like you are dying.

She said the only way out is somewhere else to go. Outreach. A bed. Treatment. A warming spot. Until that exists in enough places, the sidewalk is where people land.

If you keep seeing the same people in the same spots, tell the folks whose job it is to go get them. Brien Center crisis line is 800-252-0227. Berkshire Harm Reduction is on Summer Street. ServiceNet runs the Pearl and The First. The Health Department has free Narcan at City Hall. The library has a social worker.