SALISBURY, Md. -- Opioid overdoses in Salisbury are trending in the right direction, with emergency calls dropping significantly over the past two years. City leaders credit the decline to increased collaboration between local agencies.
The Salisbury Fire Department responded to 198 suspected overdose calls in 2023. That number fell to 92 in 2024, a 54% decrease. So far this year, overdose-related calls are down an additional 13%.
Fire officials say a key turning point came in 2024 with the launch of the department’s Mobile Integrated Healthcare program.
"We've got great teams out there and they're really engaging with the people and they're on the team because they want to help people," said Deputy Chief of Administration Chris Truitt.
That team, known as SWIFT (Salisbury Wicomico Integrated Firstcare Team), pairs a paramedic with a TidalHealth nurse practitioner. The team uses a vehicle equipped with medical supplies to respond directly to patients in need of care.
SWIFT also includes the Wicomico County Health Department’s Community Outreach Addictions Team, known as COAT, to connect people struggling with addiction to treatment and recovery services.
"When that person is ready, willing and able, the team can have them accessing services within that day," said Tasha Jamison.
Jamison currently serves as an Adult Coordinator within the Local Behavioral Health Authority. However, she also helped get COAT off the ground back in 2016.
COAT Services:
- 24-hour phone and in-person support from Peer Support Specialists
- Connections to local resources
- Access to Treatment
- Support for family and loved ones
- Naloxone(Narcan) trainings
- Ongoing follow-up
- Outreach and education
- Partnerships within the community to find people in need
Jamison said the partnership between agencies is making a measurable difference.
"We're doing a better job as a community," said Jamison. "Lives are being saved."
Anyone struggling with addiction or seeking help for a loved one is encouraged to contact the Wicomico County Health Department’s outreach team or the Recovery Resource Center. Both operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
COAT Phone Number: 443-783-6875
Recovery Resource Center: 410-749-9482
Additional resources can be found by dialing 211 or clicking on the links below.
Additional Resources:
Maryland's 211 Resource Line
