Deborah Simpson, co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Gatekeeper Innovation, Inc., makes prevention her personal mission at a Las Vegas gala fundraiser and in the filming of documentary on addiction to prescription medication. Gatekeeper Innovation, Inc., the maker of the Safer Lock™ and the Rx Locking Cap™, designs and delivers abuse-deterrent packaging that reduces diversion and accidental access to powerful medications. The company’s mission is to save lives endangered by substance misuse.
Deborah Simpson, co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Gatekeeper Innovation, Inc., recently joined hundreds of celebrants at the 16th Annual Gala benefitting the Adelson Educational Campus. Established by philanthropists Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson, the Adelson Educational Campus is the only Jewish pre-school through 12th grade educational institution in the State of Nevada.
So, here’s where the world of medication abuse and prevention gets much smaller: Dr. Miriam Adelson, a dedicated research-physician, has devoted her time since 1986 to researching the biology of addiction and treating drug abuse. In support of Dr. Adelman’s passion for prevention, Gatekeeper Innovation donated Safer Locks™ to every Gala attendee to help them prevent medication abuse and accidental poisonings in their own homes. “Gatekeeper Innovation is honored to provide Safer Locks to families to help keep powerful medications in the right hands,” explained Ms. Simpson. “Abuse-deterrent medication packaging can help to stop addiction before it starts.”
The Gala coincided with Ms. Simpson’s trip to Las Vegas, where she and son Steven were being filmed for a documentary on addiction, currently under production by filmmaker David Gleason. Their family’s story of medication misuse started in 2002 when Ms. Simpson was in a serious car accident. Repairing the damage took over 34 operations to her back, neck, shoulder, and knees, along with almost two years in a wheelchair. Her doctors prescribed powerful pain medication, which Steven, age 15, began to pilfer out of curiosity and became dependent upon. As the family struggled with Steven’s addiction, his brother, Joseph, came to understand that unrestricted access to powerful medications was the root cause of addiction – for Steven, and for thousands of others. That epiphany, plus Joseph’s love for his brother, gave birth to the development of the Safer Lock abuse-deterrent packaging to help other families prevent medication misuse and accidental access to powerful pills.
