The Opioid Crisis in Philadelphia: Killy, Dilly, Philly

Tomorrow the city of Philadelphia will hold a major parade to celebrate Philadelphia’s title as the home of America’s National Football Champions. Many fans will be sporting “Philly Philly” and “Philly Dilly” T-shirts related to the popular Bud Light commercials – which feature a king who prefers Budweiser to all other beers – and says the cheer “dilly dilly” to those bringing the King gifts of Bud Light (calling them true “friends of the Crown” while a citizen offering a homemade beer is sent to the “pit of misery”). 1

Philadelphia also holds a national title that no one will be celebrating tomorrow – the title of the having the nation’s highest per-capita overdose rate of any major city in the nation. 2  The opioid crisis is indeed a true “dilly” of a problem (e.g. “Killy Killy”) for a city that is desperately seeking answers to the crisis. 3

Philadelphia is not the only city in America that has a “dilly” of a problem in addressing the Opioid crisis. Opioid overdose deaths in America are now equivalent to a “9/11” crisis every three weeks. 4

A Real “Pit of Misery”

Those caught in the grips of an Opioid Use Disorder are living in a real life “pit of misery”. A recent blog post by Peter Wang shares his true story of living in real pit of misery in Philadelphia as a heroin addict. 5 In this blog post Peter states: “Five years ago, I was sleeping on the streets of Philadelphia with needles hanging out of my arm. Addicted to heroin and homeless, I felt incredibly alone. I felt like there was no way I could ever do anything with my life. I didn’t think there was any way I would ever turn it around.”

Like Peter, thousands of people are living in a pit of misery caused by their Opioid use disorder. To be precise, it is estimated that 21 million people in America are living with a substance use disorder. 6

True “Friends of the Crown”

Peter Wang’s blog post includes a happy ending as Peter shares how “true friends” helped him escape his pit of misery to become a productive citizen of the “kingdom”. These “true friends” included Peter’s mother, his girlfriend, and his church. 7 Those that are helping to fight the Opioid crisis in America are indeed “true friends” of the “kingdom” of America.

Join Us in Sharing this “Philadelphia Story”

Our company eTransX has been focused on being a “true friend” for those caught in the Opioid crisis by developing information systems solutions to help solve the crisis. We want to invite the readers of this blog post to join us in this quest to fight the Opioid crisis by sharing this “Philadelphia Story” with your friends and family, and exploring ways you can personally help fight the Opioid crisis in your community.

The Philadelphia Opioid story serves as a wake-up call to every community in America that the Opioid crisis is real and growing rapidly. Now is the time to take action to solve this crisis across America.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead

Richard Taylor is the director of Business Development for eTransX (www.etransx.com) an information technology company based in Brentwood TN that has been leveraging information technology to address complex challenges for over 18 years. Most recently, eTransX has teamed up with other partnering organizations to offer technology and services to help communities address the Opioid crisis.

For more details on eTransX’s Opioid solution offering go to: http://etransx.com/products/xcare-community/opioid-care-community/

Notes:

1 Youtube link for the Bud Light Dilly Dilly commercial: https://youtu.be/esoSqoST1Es

2 Based on 2016 opioid death statistics from the CDC, https://www.metro.us/news/local-news/philadelphia/philly-files-lawsuit-against-pharmaceutical-companies-opioid-crisis

3 Hit Hard by Opioids, Philadelphia Makes Most Radical Move Yet, Tribune News Service, Jan 24, 2018 as reported in www.governing.com

4 Quote by NJ Governor Chris Christie in 2017: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/09/18/the-cost-of-the-opioid-crisis

5 https://cathytaughinbaugh.com/4-powerful-ways-ive-found-sense-self-worth/

6 CBHSQ (2016), Results from the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS) as retrieved from:
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-FFR1-2015/NSDUH-FFR1-2015/NSDUH-FFR1-2015.pdf

7 https://cathytaughinbaugh.com/4-powerful-ways-ive-found-sense-self-worth/