Weakley County Stories

Melesa

I have been with the Weakley County Prevention Coalition since September 2017 as the Regional Overdose Prevention Specialist of Region 6 North covering all of North-West Tennessee. My goal as a ROPS is to educate the public, medical community, law enforcement and first responders on the opioid epidemic. I currently train and equip individuals with the lifesaving drug Narcan. Since beginning this career I have established connections and received many testimonies of use from the lifesaving drug. My true passion comes from my personal life stories of dealing with persons who overdose while working in emergency room in rural hospitals. I have also worked in Labor and Delivery areas and home health. I have seen addictions related to opioids from birth to death, from the newborn battling NAS to someone experiencing overdose and then that individual making a change for the better after choosing treatment and long-standing recovery. My hope is to be able to instill hope in the lives of individuals battling this epidemic.