City leaders join FAN leadership and the Detroit Quick Response Team to celebrate the successful launch of the program (Image Courtesy of City of Detroit)
The City of Detroit recently launched a bold new program to combat the escalating opioid overdose crisis that claimed 430 lives in 2023 alone. With Naloxone, a life-saving medication administered 2,400 times last year by the Detroit Fire Department, city leaders, including Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison and Executive Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms, aim to provide critical support for overdose survivors. This initiative addresses a growing challenge, as many individuals saved by Naloxone refuse hospital care, leaving them vulnerable to future crises without access to ongoing treatment.
In response to the opioid crisis, the City of Detroit began the Detroit Quick Response Team (QRT) on September 16th. This team will follow up with people who have been treated for suspected opioid overdoses to assess their needs and help connect them to treatment if they’re willing. The team will also help remove barriers to other services, such as housing, food assistance, and employment support, to reduce the risk of overdose.
Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison has spent his entire career in public service. He is excited about the Detroit QRT getting to work to provide a continuum of care for overdose patients.
“I know that this partnership here will really save lives. Oftentimes, when an individual experiences an overdose, it is not fatal. In the ER, in the emergency medicine room, and in the medical room, which you will see many times, there are familiar faces, overdoses, and another overdose. It’s the same individual,” Bettison said.
“And we know that Narcan has been a lifesaver and allows individuals to overdose repeatedly, where we train the community, where they’re able to administer that aid. But the goal with this and this partnership, what’s making a lot of difference, is the wraparound services to get them the aftercare treatment, to get them the intervention that will ultimately break the bond and free them from the addiction. That’s what’s the game changing.”
Starting September 16th, when emergency responders treat someone for a possible drug overdose, they will let the person know that a team of people who have also struggled with addiction will reach out to them. This team will talk to them about staying safe and getting them the help they need.
A quick response team (QRT) will then step in. If the person doesn’t want to go to the hospital, the team will visit where the emergency call came from within 1-3 hours. If the person goes to the hospital, the QRT will visit their home within 2-4 days.
Detroit Executive Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms shared the loss of his brother to addiction and mental illness. He said he looks forward to the addition of the Detroit QRT to provide resources to families to help prevent devastating losses like the one his family endured.
“This exciting new model is going to be a game-changer for our residents. DFD personnel are saving the lives of overdose patients every day, but their role ends when emergency care is complete. Our members are looking forward to seeing the results of the Quick Response Team, as our community will surely be more resilient,” Simms said.
Detroit’s Quick Response Team (QRT) will get referrals from both the Detroit Fire Department and community organizations across the city. These organizations can ask the QRT to help if they think someone is in danger of an opioid overdose and could use the QRT’s support. For instance, teams that reach out to people experiencing homelessness, funded by the Housing and Revitalization Department, will send individuals who might be dealing with substance use issues to the QRT for assistance.
“After EMS treats an overdose emergency, connecting our residents to ongoing substance use treatment is essential as we work to create a healthy, thriving community where everyone feels supported instead of forgotten,” Mayor Mike Duggan said.
“The Quick Response Team is going to provide this continuation of care and help those willing to start along the path to recovery.”
QRTs are a great way to help people struggling with addiction in Michigan. These teams connect residents to treatment and support services to help save lives. QRTs are made up of a small group of caring and knowledgeable people, like peer recovery coaches, social workers, and other professionals who can provide the help that individuals need.
Approximately 50% of patients reached by a QRT were interested in pursuing treatment for their substance use disorder in one pilot. However, many QRTs have challenges reaching transient patients; Detroit’s QRT model will innovate to address this issue by responding on-site when a patient declines transport to a hospital.
Thomas Hunter, a resilient individual and survivor from Detroit, spoke passionately about his personal battle with addiction, now the Program Manager for FAN’s QRT. He expressed deep appreciation for the City of Detroit’s unwavering dedication to addressing the critical issue of addiction.
“Today, I have a life that’s worth living. Today, I have a life that I’m able to sit here at a press conference, a person who slept up under the bridge on 75, and talk about being the project manager of a team of people who’s diligently going to go out and pursue to help other people like us, people that suffer from SUDU use,” Hunter said.
“That’s hope. That’s hope, and that’s what we need to see, and that’s why we do what we do, not just our team with the Detroit QRT team, but the people that work for our organization. We work diligently to make sure we meet people where they’re at so we can give them and provide them the services that they need.”
The City of Detroit sought a trusted community partner to operate our QRT through the issuance of a Request for Proposal, resulting in a two-year, $1.7 million contract with Face Addiction Now (FAN). FAN is a nonprofit agency founded in 2007, recently changing its name from Families Against Narcotics. They currently operate 17 Quick Response Teams across the State of Michigan, but the Detroit team will be the first to operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The City of Detroit will use these funds to build on our prior efforts to address the opioid crisis, working alongside our partners in the community to expand substance use disorder prevention, community education, naloxone distribution and training, syringe service programs, and access to high-quality substance use disorder treatment.
Judge Linda Davis, co-founder of FAN, thanked the City of Detroit for its partnership and commitment to fighting the opioid epidemic.
“I do a lot of work around opioid settlement dollars, and I’m going to tell you that you should be the model of how this money gets spent. They have been tirelessly working and really looking at programs that think outside the box and not just funding the same old things over and over again,” Davis said.
“And their unique approach to this has been inspiring to me. It’s lit a new fire under FAN. We see this as an incredible opportunity to model this to other communities for what can be done to save lives and improve the health of individuals within a community.”
The Detroit QRT is a group of caring and dedicated individuals from Detroit who are helping people dealing with substance use issues. The team includes peer recovery coaches, community health workers, harm reduction specialists, and others who have personal experience with substance use disorder.
In 2021 and 2022, nationwide settlements were reached to resolve opioid litigation brought by states and local governments against pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies that are said to have fueled the crisis. As a result of these settlements, the City of Detroit will receive $48 million over the next 18 years to reverse, treat and prevent opioid-related overdoses.
The Detroit Health Department’s Behavioral Health Program helps people with substance use issues by providing education to prevent addiction, support from people in recovery, training and distribution of Naloxone to prevent overdoses, and services to help connect people with the help they need.
Chief Public Health Officer Denise Fair Razo expressed the Detroit Health Department is committed to promoting mental wellness and removing the stigma associated with substance use disorder.
“We provide outreach, training and wraparound referrals, going beyond the walls so that all Detroiters have access to resources to help them achieve their personal goals for health and well-being,” said Fair Razo
“The Opioid Quick Response team is a giant step forward, delivering help where and when it is most needed to Detroiters who are in crisis from substance use disorder. This is a lifeline that will connect Detroiters with support to help them take the first step on their recovery journey.”
Detroit residents and community organizations can refer someone to the QRT for a visit by using FAN’s Request a Visit form. Residents can also call the Hope Line at 833-202-HOPE from 8 am – 10 pm every day to discuss available substance use treatment and resources.
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