Gov. Holcomb Announces $1.7 Million Investment in Harm Reduction Teams to Curb Drug Epidemic

Governor Eric J. Holcomb announced on Nov. 4 the implementation of a Harm Reduction Street Outreach (HRSO) team for Hoosiers at risk of a drug overdose. This initiative will be funded with $1.7 million distributed among the awardees.

Harm Reduction Street Outreach teams will include one supervisor and two outreach workers; they must also connect with the local community, with knowledge of areas where illicit substance use is high. Organizations are also connected to the community through harm reduction, substance use, recovery, or homeless services.

The Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) received 25 applications. Ten teams were selected and will be awarded funds and harm-reduction training by DMHA.

The awardees include:

• The Artistic Recovery; Lake, Porte and LaPorte counties
• Recovery Café Fulton County (We Bloom, Inc.)
• Recovery Café Indy (We Bloom, Inc.); Marion County
• The Never Alone Project; Marion County
• Fayette County Connection Café
• Open Door Health Services and Addictions Coalition of Delaware County
• Gateway to Hope and Meridian Health Services; Tippecanoe County
• Indiana Recovery Alliance; Monroe County
• Project ME FW, Inc.; Allen County
• AIDS Ministries/AIDS Assist of North Indiana; Elkhart and St. Joseph counties

A Team of Experts Will Begin Reviewing Every Deadly Overdose in Tippecanoe County.

A grant from the Indiana Department of Health will help a new overdose fatality team review every deadly overdose in Tippecanoe County. Amanda Balser of the Tippecanoe County Health Department hopes this $75,000 grant will allow them to review overdose deaths from different angles to better understand the level of drugs and types of drugs utilized. The grant will also fund naloxone education and recovery coach training programs.

Indiana Drug Overdose Dashboard

Please visit the Indiana Drug Overdose Dashboard, where you will find data from 2017 up to provisional data for 2021. In this dashboard, you will find data regarding opioid prescriptions, hospital discharges, and drug-related deaths.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

Introducing: Opioid and Alcohol Misuse and Risk of Suicide: A Literature Review

1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. EST, Dec. 8

Suicide has been the second leading cause of death for individuals 10-34 years of age every year since 2019. Suicide and substance use can share risk factors, such as the use of similar substances, particularly depressants such as opioids or alcohol. The Central East Prevention Technology Transfer Center Network conducted a literature review of opioid and alcohol misuse and risk of suicide. This free webinar will discuss and summarize its findings. There will also be a discussion of evidence-based prevention strategies that address substance and suicide risk.

To register for this event, click here.

Pitching Prevention: Effective Messaging to Promote Prevention

2 p.m. – 4 p.m. EST, Dec. 9

This training is targeted toward prevention professionals in the Health & Human Services Region 5, which includes Indiana. This free webinar will focus on using persuasive communication, tailoring your message to your audience, and using communication to overcome barriers to full community engagement. The training will also provide an opportunity for participants to apply these skills through small group work. Attendees will be able to identify three key elements of effective prevention messages and will have the opportunity to develop a prevention pitch.

To register for this event, click here.

Walking Alongside: Strategies to Support Parenting in Recovery

3 p.m.-4:30 p.m. EST, Dec. 15

During this webinar there will be a discussion of healthy and safe parenting within the context of a supportive community during recovery. A mom will share how motherhood was a motivator to her recovery. Presenters will describe strategies that substance use treatment and recovery services can adopt to simultaneously increase both recovery and parenting capital through individual and group approaches.

To register for this event, click here.