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    • Milwaukee County’s grim death toll also reveals hopeful trends
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    Milwaukee County’s grim death toll also reveals hopeful trends

    Online Niel Posted on

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    At first glance, reading a new report from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office on 2023 deaths is a serious matter.

    Accidental deaths far outnumbered natural deaths, with drug overdoses being the main factor. Fatal overdoses related to cocaine and synthetic opioids, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, have been on the rise among all demographics. And gun violence is the leading cause of both homicides and suicides.

    But for Dr. Ben Weston, the county’s chief health advisor and OEM-EMS medical director, said there is a glimmer of hope in the trends outlined in the report.

    “In 2020, it’s bad news on both sides. Opioid deaths are on the rise. COVID deaths are completely out of control. But now, three, four years later, we’re starting to see both of them take a turn,” he said. he said.

    “I’m confident in the trends we’re seeing that we have better days ahead,” he said.

    Natural deaths are trending down to pre-pandemic levels

    Natural deaths were once the “biggest driver” of coroner’s work, according to Karen Domagalski, director of operations for the coroner’s office.

    But in a recent shift, natural deaths became the second leading cause of death in the county in 2023, with 860 deaths reported, according to the report.

    “Natural deaths are below the rate of accidental deaths,” Weston pointed out, noting that’s a good thing because it’s a return to the numbers reported before the COVID-19 pandemic.

    In 2019, 850 natural deaths were reported. In 2020, the number doubled to 2,101, falling to 1,916 in 2021 and then to 1,471 in 2022.

    While Weston said the county is still experiencing far too many COVID-related deaths, he explained that the numbers are down because of a mix of vaccines and natural immunity or infection-induced immunity.

    “We’re still seeing more deaths from COVID-19 than we’d like, but we’re close to getting back to some sort of baseline of natural deaths,” Weston said.

    To prevent drug overdoses, the county is increasing resources

    More than 1,100 accidental deaths last year accounted for nearly half of all reported deaths, according to the report.

    Of that number, 647 were overdose-related deaths.

    “Like other counties and states in the United States, we are affected by the opioid (crisis). The number of drug overdose deaths has increased significantly. The type of drugs used has changed over (the years) ,” the boss. Forensic physician Dr. Wieslawa Tlomak told supervisors when she presented the annual report during a financial meeting in October.

    She said heroin and cocaine deaths, as well as prescription drug overdoses, were previously more common. But now added to the list are fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, and methamphetamine, also known as meth or crystal, and a mixture of fentanyl and cocaine.

    The report showed increased use of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and/or cocaine among black, Hispanic, and white residents.

    Blacks had the highest crude rate of drug-related deaths at 114.34 per 100,000, and Hispanics 60.66 per 100,000. Both groups have seen increases in their rates since 2018. For white people, the numbers are starting to decline, with 64.23 per 100,000 reported in 2022 to 59.78 last year.

    While accidental deaths and, in turn, fatal overdoses are on a general downward trend from a peak in 2020, Weston said the numbers are a good indicator of where attention is needed among certain demographics and communities of Milwaukee County.

    “Even though we’re seeing a net decline, when you layer that on, we still have a lot of areas that we need to focus on … even with that decline, there’s a lot of communities that are still really struggling that are actually growing, as is the black community in their struggle with opioid-related deaths,” Weston said.

    A lot of factors are at play in turning the tide — and Weston credits upstream and downstream efforts at the county level for providing resources for people dealing with substance use disorders.

    He emphasized the county’s efforts to provide housing security and other county-run services as well risk reduction machines and moving the mental health service center downtown Emergency Center for Mental Health.

    “I think that’s what everybody’s expecting and anticipating for, is we going to have another drop in opioid deaths? Is this a real trend or is it a problem?” Weston said. “I think we’re hopeful that it’s a trend and it’s coming out of all the work that so many people are doing in that space.”

    Overall trends are down, but gun violence accounts for a large percentage of homicides, suicides

    There were 201 homicides and 117 suicides reported last year, down from 2020.

    This drop is part of a broader downward trend in Milwaukee, as a result of record homicide and suicide rates between 2019 and 2022.

    However, gun violence was the leading cause of death in both cases, with more than half of the suicides and approximately 89% of homicides involving a firearm.

    A 2023 Sentinel Journal Analysis revealed that 71 out of 100 fatal shootings in Wisconsin were suicides. That finding comes amid an 18-year trend of steady increases in gun deaths in the state.

    In 2022 alone, more than 800 people lost their lives to gunshot wounds, marking a 95 percent increase in the gun death rate since 2004, when adjusted for population growth. Of these deaths, over 500 were suicides.

    “Numbers are never good, are they? One homicide death is too many, but we can say the trends are certainly encouraging,” Weston said.

    Regarding gun-involved suicide trends, Weston said there needs to be more focus on destigmatizing conversations about mental health, as well as investing in services for residents.

    “Suicide is something that is so important to talk about because it is stigmatized in our society. When someone dies by suicide, often the cause of death is not discussed, right? And so, I think it further stigmatizes it, pushes people further into the darkness when they’re struggling with mental health or having thoughts of self-harm or suicide,” Weston said.

    If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text “HOPELINE” to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 741741.

    Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or [email protected]. Follow X @Vanessa_Swales.

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