Opioid Abuse Training Session Draws Dozens Of Officers, Community Members
ROSEMOUNT, Minn. (WCCO) – Hundreds of people gathered Wednesday morning in the south metro for a training session on opioid abuse.
The session, inside the Rosemount Community Center, involved law enforcement and members the community, all of whom are trying to do their part in curbing the opioid crisis.
This event, which was hosted by the East Metro Crime Prevention Coalition, featured speakers such as Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom, Dakota County Sheriff Tim Leslie, as well as people affected by opioid abuse.
Kate Erickson, a representative from the Minnesota Department of Health, showed off the department's new opioid dashboard that tracks the crisis in Minnesota.
Erickson said there are three areas that need to be addressed: emergency response, treatment and prevention.
"There's so many things we can do," she said. "I can clean out my medicine cabinet. It is harmful to hang onto unused and expired medications in our home, so that's a concrete action every person can do."
The East Metro Crime Prevention Coalition involves law enforcement from Ramsey, Dakota, and Washington counties.