2012 Atlantic Journalism Awards Finalists
Attachments
| Slug/Label | |
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| Date Aired or Published | June 10, 17, 2012. |
| Media outlet where first aired or published: | CBC Radio One, Maritimes |
| Name of Program: | Maritime Magazine |
| If co-produced, list partner: | |
| Location: | Halifax |
| List awards, grants: | |
| Running time (TV/Radio): | 54:21 |
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Short explanation of the story and how it developed: (Margot Brunelle writing..) I remember distinctly the day I got the email about the three break-ins at a TJs Convenience Store in Coldbrook. It was late on a Thursday afternoon, January 26th. I could easily have overlooked it. Amy Graves was relentless with emails. She was convinced the crimes pointed to a disturbing trend. Amy had become a passionate and persistent voice about prescription drug abuse since her brother's unexpected death about ten months earlier. Josh died after mixing alcohol and dilaudid at a party. Amy started tracking crime in the Annapolis Valley and linked the robberies to people who were desperate for money to feed their addiction to prescription drugs. That Thursday, when she sent me a link to a report about TJs, I read it carefully and realized it was time to follow through. What I heard from TJ's owner Steve Morine shocked and scared me. Until then, the Annapolis Valley was, in my mind, a beautiful and peaceful stretch of road to travel. Suddenly I began to see beyond the orchards and farm fields and small-town comforts to an area where deeply troubled people were living on the edge. Over the course of 2012, in my work on Information Morning, we explored this story on many levels. We pressured the authorities (political, health, police) to acknowledge the problem of prescription drug abuse and address it. We introduced our audience to several vulnerable people at the centre of the story. But I took this investigation to a deeper level for a two-part documentary prepared for the regional program Maritime Magazine. We had heard that many of the people addicted to prescription drugs were getting their supply from one Wolfville clinic in particular. The rumour was corroborated by police and politicians. But no other reporter had confronted the doctor who ran the clinic. Late one afternoon, I travelled to his office to do that. I asked point blank whether Mud Creek Clinic was the source of prescriptions being sold on the street. Yes, it was a hostile interview. I was also biding my time, waiting for Kristen Dowling to get out of prison. She is a young mother who had been addicted to pills for years when her family doctor suddenly cut her off. She was arrested after robbing a pharmacy (in desperation to feed her habit) and served time at Nova Institute. Between calls to her parole officer, we sat down on the edge of Halifax harbour to talk about Kristen's life in drugs and crime, and how she wanted to help others beat those demons. There are so many sad, compelling stories about prescription drug abuse, and they often involve people like Kristen who've led troubled lives .. or young, naive party-goers, oblivious to the risks they are taking. It was perhaps Glen Levy's experience that shocked our listeners the most. He was a successful small-town pharmacist, a family man, a volunteer firefighter. Suddenly he realized he was addicted to a horrifying cocktail of prescription medications, and his life went into a tailspin. During his long treatment, he told me he met hundreds of other health professionals who were also addicted. This two-part Maritime Magazine project was produced by Christina Harnett and aired in June 2012. In closing I must give credit to Amy Graves. None of this could have happened without her help. Amy's very public battle finally convinced police to charge a young man who allegedly sold/gave dilaudid to her brother. His trial is underway now. She still speaks out at school and community meetings about the perils of prescription drugs used recreationally, but she has moved to Halifax to study criminology. A new methadone treatment program is now being offered in the Annapolis Valley. The story continues to unfold .. |
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Resources of the newsroom (money and time) available to complete the story: Maritime Magazine is produced by Christina Harnett, the only full-time employee on the show. Margot Brunelle gathered some of this material while working at Information Morning. She was relieved from her regular responsibilities for approximately four days to gather fresh material and write the pieces. |
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