DOING THE MATH: LOCAL YOUTH STILL DOING THE DRUGS

Five years ago, shortly after Thanksgiving, the Daily News published
a four-part series on a new and deadly drug-abuse trend in Southwest Florida.

We called are special report "Poisoning Paradise" after we had
documented an alarming number of "heroin-related" deaths in our part
of Florida. Over a three-year span, at least 63 men and women ended
up in local morgues. One Sunday we devoted our front page to profiles
on 11 of the dead.

Most, if not all, were described as young (in their 20s and 30s),
well-educated and from "good" homes. These weren't the stereotypical
back- alley junkies with candle, spoon, tourniquet and syringe. These
were hard-working people who continuously sought a once-tasted heroin
high by mixing up a drug cocktail. The list of possible ingredients
was long: alcohol, cocaine, Xanax, Oxycotin, methadone.

Back in 2001, we called these deaths heroin-related. Today, law
enforcement and medical personal use the term "poly-drug toxicity."

A rose is a rose. And - sadly - this deadly rose still plagues us.

Collier County Sheriff's Col. Kevin Rambosk, who is vice chairman of
a countywide Substance Abuse Coalition, said Thursday that 50 or 60
fatal overdoses are still documented by area medical examiners each
year. Most ODs seem to be related to methadone, but the term
"poly-drug toxicity" is key. "Poly" means many.

"You don't just take it (once) and die," Rambosk said.

It's a process that takes time. Adult abusers repeatedly mix and
partake of drug cocktails until the toxins build up and the body
shuts down. It can take months, even years, before abusers succeed in
fatally poisoning themselves.

Rambosk and the other members of his coalition - most notably Circuit
Judge Lauren L. Brodie and Medical Examiner Marta Coburn - are busy
raising awareness about this and other alarming trends in our
community, especially one that involves youngsters more than adults.

Law enforcement and medical professionals are seeing a huge change in
substance abuse among teenagers and even preteens, Rambosk said. So
far this year 117 youngsters have been treated at Naples Community
Hospital emergency rooms for overdosing on prescription or
over-the-counter drugs - Xanex, Triple C and other medicine
cabinet-liquor cabinet fare.

Rambosk has done the math:

"Every third day, someone from 0 to 17, goes to the hospital."

Startling.

Col. Rambosk, Judge Brodie and Dr. Coburn have been touring civic
groups and service clubs with a 20-minute PowerPoint presentation on
this growing trend and how to recognize it. Editorial Page Editor
Jeff Lytle has compiled a print presentation on today's Perspective cover.

Here's hoping we have more success at stemming this trend than we had
in stemming that other trend five years ago.