One of the frustrations that many healthcare providers experience is that they will rescue someone from an overdose only to see them a short time later again in the ER.

Now, officials in Burlington Vermont are working to help Overdose Survivors get help immediately after they recover in the ER. As reported by MyNBC5, new programs across Burlington are aiming to help addicts at a very critical time: just after an overdose.

“That might be a time where a person is acutely aware of the situation they are in and how dire the consequences are,” Deputy Chief of Police Shawn Burke said.

The city is starting a Safe Response Team made up of the city’s opioid policy coordinator, Burke, and the fire chief.

The goal is to check in during a window of opportunity.

“We’re hoping that by intersecting services with those people, that we will see a quicker path to recovery and ultimately a reduction in the overdose rate,” Burke said.

“They will have someone who’s been in their shoes right there for them,” said Gary De Carolis, Executive Director of the Turning Point Center. “All people in recovery themselves, all people who have been there and can share that experience and offer options.”

He said even though they are serving more people, the center no longer has a waiting list and he’s optimistic about the area’s fight against addiction.

“I think you’re seeing a community that’s really saying we want to make this different,” De Carolis said.

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To read more about how officials are providing help to overdose survivors, please visit MyNBC5.com.