DPH stepping up in the fight against opioid abuse in the restaurant industry

DELAWARE– Delaware’s Division of Public Health is stepping up its efforts in the fight against opioid abuse and drug overdoses, but this time, they’ve got a laser focus on the restaurant industry.

“When we spoke with some of the managers and owners of restaurants they acknowledged this is a problem for them and they asked for information, they asked for tools, and they asked for support,” Kate Brookins, Public Health Administrator at DPH, said.

And now, they’re getting information, tools, and support in the form of the Restaurant Accolade Program. The program trains and educates restaurant industry staff on how to reverse an opioid overdose and also support coworkers with substance abuse disorders.

“Some awards, some certificates, some recognition, and ongoing support and a link directly to our office where we can send out a team to help train additional employees, to help provide information,” Brookins said.

The Division of Public Health said that in a 2017 study examining drug overdoses where they found that 10% of Delawareans who died from them were employed by the food industry. That’s something that doesn’t surprise Warren Rosenfeld, owner of Rosenfeld’s Jewish Deli.

“The people that we have apply for certain positions many times seem to be people that are struggling,” Rosenfeld said.

Rosenfeld said he had a former cook who died of an overdose and would appreciate any resources available to protect his employees.

“So, anything that the state can do to help educate us for symptoms, anything the state can do to help us once the overdose is in effect is going to be tremendously helpful to our business and to ourselves,” Rosenfeld said.

And, Rich Garrahan, a managing member of La Vita Hospitality, agrees. He said the restaurant industry is like a big family and he wants to be there for his team, especially in times of need.

“Just like many people and their own families, when you’re trying to help a family member that’s suffering from dependency or mental health problem you feel pretty helpless and powerless,” Garrahan said.

The program may be fairly new, but several restaurants across the state have already signed up, with many others ready to get involved.

“I hope that other hospitality industries like ours will embrace it,” Garrahan

The Division of Public Health said they delayed the launch of this program last year because of the pandemic, but now it’s time to get that education out there.