MILWAUKEE — Already this year, there have been more than 700 non-fatal overdoses in Milwaukee.
That number might sound shocking or even discouraging — but to the MORI team, it signifies hope. Each number is a person who still has a chance at beating addiction.
The Milwaukee Overdose Response Initiative (MORI) team is attempting to track down every overdose survivor, who has been revived by Milwaukee EMS and offer them treatment and recovery services.
"I went to treatment 16 times before I got well," admitted Amy Molinski. She works out of Station 31 in Milwaukee as a peer support specialist. It's the city's only fire station able to dispatch people with her specific skill set.
"Most people can't understand what it feels like to be completely hopeless," she added.
Amy is a certified peer support specialist — she joins paramedics to knock on the door of someone who has recently survived an overdose.
"They're here, they're still with us and we have this opportunity," she explained.
The Milwaukee Overdose Response initiative is the city's only first-responder program linking overdose survivors with treatment services.
Captain David Polachowski, with MFD, says peer support specialists like Amy have made all the difference.
"I would love to say that I can give them my little dad talk, and I've given that in the back of the med unit, but it's only going to go so far," he said.
If someone is not ready to enter treatment contact information and a 'HOPE Kit', with fentanyl testing strips and Narcan, is left behind.
"And we do have people follow up with us at a later time," Capt. Polachowski added. "It's sometimes been months later, (they say) 'Hey, I had your card — I realize now that I can't do this on my own. Can you come by and see me?' Absolutely we will. No questions asked."
The catalyst for Amy to accept that kind of help was discovering she was pregnant, with a baby girl.
"I was just counting down the days," she recalled. "I was waiting for my addiction to take me out and I got pregnant with her and I thought — it might be worth it to try one more time."
At one time, Amy says she'd lost all hope. And now hope is all she wants to give to others. "She (my daughter) gave that to me and I hope that I can give that to other people."
Currently, five peer support specialists work out of Station 31. Both Amy and David think there is potential to grow this program in the future but they point out, it is grant-funded — and funding is a big piece of the puzzle.
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