Alexandria ACTS Angel Program
Alexandria Police Department
Alexandria, KY
Police Social Worker (PSW), Kelly Pompilio
Email:
Phone number: 859-635-4126
About us: The city of Alexandria is approximately 6.5 square miles with a population of around 9,500. Alexandria PD currently has 19 sworn officers, 1 PSW, and 2 clerks. In 2016 the Alexandria PD had 40 drug related calls; 17 drug charges and 7 deaths. In 2017 through mid September there were 42 drug related calls; 16 charged and 3 deaths. The Fire Department responded to 55 overdoses in 2016 and 57 overdoses as of September 2017. The county hospital Emergency Room had 1584 Heroin overdoses in 2016 and as of September 2017 have had 1506.
Alexandria ACTS (Addiction Community Training and Support) Angel Program was developed in October 2016 and launched in December 2016. Our program has 2 major components:
Community / AngelOutreach / Volunteer
Meet once a month / Meet once a month
Resources, new developments, identify strategies / Assist participant with locating resources and connecting individuals to treatment
Guest speaker (informative or personal story) / Assist family members with locating resources and support groups.
Provide and teach administration of Nasal Narcan / Direct outreach to individuals that have overdosed or individuals that have drug charges.
Community engagement / Educate and support families and loved ones
Assist with state insurance if qualify
Under the ANGEL program, any person in the community can walk into the Alexandria Police Department seeking immediate treatment for an addiction without fear of retribution. If the person is in possession of drugs or paraphernalia such as needles, they will not be charged, and items will be properly disposed of. Anyone can approach an officer on the street and ask for help. Additionally, any person requesting help while doing community outreach will be screened and assigned an Angel. Participants screened into the ANGEL program are assisted by PSW and/or Angel volunteers. The PSW and/or Angels complete intake forms on participants, connect with treatment centers, and facilitate transportation or anything else a participant may need in their transition to recovery.
Action Steps: 1. Look at various models to determine what fits your community. 2. Connect with community partners/support groups/treatment providers to develop relationships. 3. Developed policy, procedures, forms, etc. 4. Town Hall meeting-community engagement and Angel recruitment. 5. Trained Angels 6. Launched Alexandria ACTS Angel Initiative. Additionally we assist with transportation, assist families with filing Casey’s Law, assist with obtaining assessments, attend court, assist with aftercare, and assist with basic living needs.