Cara grant directed at youth opioid use - elizabethtown area communities that care (eactc) has served the elizabethtown community for 20 years, developing partnerships throughout the immediate…

Cara grant directed at youth opioid use - elizabethtown area communities that care (eactc) has served the elizabethtown community for 20 years, developing partnerships throughout the immediate community and the county. Eactc is completing its 10TH year as a DFC grantee and its 3RD year as a cara grantee. Located in the northwestern corner of lancaster county, elizabethtown?s distance from the lancaster county seat and its rural nature pose challenges to community members in accessing critical social services. As a result of lack of access to and presence of services in elizabethtown, community-wide health disparities have developed. PA ranks 4TH in fatal overdoses nationally and the adult fatal overdose deaths in elizabethtown doubled in 2020 from 2019. Youth problem behaviors related to substance use and abuse are present in the elizabethtown community. Significant stigma around opioid and heroin use persists as does stigma around the provision of naloxone. Students are abusing prescription drugs at rates that exceed county and state benchmarks and there are gaps in student perception on the riskiness of prescription pain reliever abuse. Teens indicate that parental stigma and shame is the largest barrier to treatment. Student drug use is inextricably linked to mental health concerns. Elizabethtown students that report high depressive symptoms are 5.6 times more likely to use marijuana. Elizabethtown data indicates that students who have abused prescription pain medications are also frequently using marijuana. 70% of 10TH grade students and 46% of 12TH grade students that abused prescription pain relievers also report using marijuana 40 or more times in their lifetimes.eactc plans to utilize strategies to prevent opioid and prescription drug use among youth, to change the culture regarding the acceptability of youth misuse, and decrease the availability of prescription pain relievers within the community. -eactc will implement a targeted youth and parent social norms campaigns to decr ease student misperceptions of prescription drug abuse and target misperceptions on treatment. -eactc will use national prescription drug take back events to distribute information, educate community members about safe storage practices, offer naloxone kits and training, distribute prescription drug lock boxes and deterra throughout the community.-targeted naloxone distribution to parents and individuals in recovery/addiction-eactc will work with the health teachers to provide resources and technical assistance on best practice materials for the middle school and high school curricula.-eactc will provide multiple mentor programs for students in grades k-12-eactc?s youth coalition will continue to promote mental health workshops and expand these workshops to become components of the 9TH grade health curriculum-eactc will work to change consequences for youth through monthly and annual student recognition programs that acknowledge positive behaviors and healthy choices. -support and promote multidisciplinary community resource program and treatment options for individuals and families affected by opioid addiction-eactc will provide best practice policies on drug possession/use to the school district and local resources for students, parents, and families struggling with prescription drug use/abuse on local treatment options. -contribute to state-wide advocacy through the commonwealth prevention alliance related to drug laws and opioid manufacturer settlement allocations-eactc will connect with county partners and service providers to bring three new services/initiatives/resources directly to elizabethtown to address community health disparities resulting directly from opioid abuse.