On August 31, 2021, the White House officially released their proclamation that September is National Recovery month. This month is a great time to hold space for someone you know in recovery. Whether your loved one is in long term recovery of over 30 years, or has been in recovery for 30 days, it is a monumental success that deserves great recognition.

People in recovery may have experienced significant hurdles in the past year and a half due to the pandemic. From lockdown orders to political and social turmoil, there are many stressors and potential triggers that can send someone working so hard, into a state of despair and struggle. This September, we celebrate everyone in recovery, and those who are gaining the momentum to get there soon.

Here are simple reminders for how you can support someone you know who is in recovery from a substance use disorder. Practicing active, compassionate listening is a great way to show that you care, and that you are a dependable system of support. Follow this link to learn more about active listening.

Is there a culture of substance abuse on American college campuses? If so, what are the risk factors and what can be done to improve the health and well-being of this population of emerging adults? A 2019 study attempts to unpack these issues. The study identifies a number of risk factors for substance use among college students: low perception of harm, peer influences, college being a “time of transition” in one’s life, poor academic performance, binge drinking, and membership in a fraternity or sorority.

Unfortunately, alcohol and drug use is also a predictor of increased risk for both committing and experiencing sexual assault on college campuses. Binge drinking, as well as involvement in fraternities and sororities, are additional risk factors for experiencing a sexual assault.

There may be a need to reduce the harms of substance use in American colleges, especially considering almost half of college students meet the criteria for at least one substance use disorder, and 39 percent of full-time college students report having engaged in binge drinking over the past month.

Campus-wide substance use prevention interventions may help to curb these patterns. Ohio State’s Student Wellness Center has recently launched one such program. The program, called Beyond Your Own Buzz, focuses on facilitating students’ reframing of their alcohol and drug use. Its goal is not to force students to abstain from using drugs and alcohol, but rather to help individuals establish a healthier relationship with their substance use. With an emphasis on harm reduction, Beyond Your Own Buzz provides a space for students to mutually support one another and set their own substance use goals.

Though meetings have halted with the end of spring semester, they will begin again in the fall. Meetings take place every Thursday from 5:30pm to 6:30pm on Zoom. Here is a link to the Zoom meeting. There is no need to sign up and students are encouraged to drop in as they see fit.

Ohio State also provides mental health services to currently-enrolled students, as well as spouses and partners of students covered by Ohio State student health insurance. For more information, please visit the Counseling and Consultation Service (CCS) website or call 614-292-5766.

Quick Response Teams (QRT) are interdisciplinary overdose response teams comprised of law enforcement, EMS, peer recovery mentors and counseling staff who collaborate to provide outreach and education to individuals and families following an overdose. The ECI team had an opportunity to interview Danielle Ratcliff, CEO of R.E.A.C.H. for Tomorrow, and Creed Culbreath, Collaboration Director of R.E.A.C.H. for Tomorrow, about Highland County’s QRT.

Culbreath described how the Highland County QRT had a unique approach from the start, as it went above and beyond overdose response. Culbreath discussed how “our current care coordinator does [go on deployments] which is nice because we can often arrange treatment in real-time in the person’s home. We can often leave with them set up with their first appointment or assessment. We do follow-up, we offer multiple other services [such as connection to Medicaid, childcare, job services, etc.], that I think originally differentiated us from a lot of [other] QRT.”  He also described how the importance of using screening tools such as “screen[ing] for their [the individual who experienced an overdose] nutrition, their physical health.”

Both Culbreath and Ratcliff emphasized the connection between trauma and addiction. Culbreath reported, “one thing that’s been a differentiator for us from the start, we screen for trauma, childhood and early adult, as a driver of addiction – also human trafficking.” Ratcliff also said, “we realized we’ve got to address trauma, we can’t just address mental health [or addiction] because they all overlap. R.E.A.C.H wants to reach that need.”

The Highland County QRT also recognizes the importance of diversity on their team, as Culbreath stated, “we always try to have men and women [on the QRT], we wanted to have [individuals of] different races and ethnicities, so that no matter who we went to see, they could at least identify with one person on the team. We were able to build a team that was representative of everybody in the community.”

Finally, both Culbreath and Ratcliff processed the meaning they find in their work. Ratcliff acknowledged the reward that comes with working to empower the community, “when people get the ‘aha’ and then they are willing to back it up with their time to create change in their community.” Culbreath reported one of the most impactful parts of the job is the grateful comments he receives from others, as “the feedback is what keeps us going.” He recounted appreciate comments from family members whose loved ones received services from the QRT such as, “I struggled for years alone trying to find the right place for my son – nothing seemed to work, and you all took the time to listen and see what his or her needs really were and connect him with therapists. And now I feel like I’ve got this person back in my life.”  

Overdoses have surged during the past year, likely as an impact of COVID-19. Four out of the five Ohio counties with the highest overdose rates in 2020 were ECI counties.  One way to address the rising overdose rates is to make lifesaving naloxone available in public places. Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a medication that quickly reverses the effects of an opioid overdose by binding to the opioid receptors in the brain and preventing the effects of opioids. Naloxone boxes, such as Naloxbox, are a way to  increase access. Similar to AED defibrillators, these boxes are mounted to walls in public places and contain naloxone and instructions for administration for emergency overdose situations. These naloxone boxes can be put in libraries, public health buildings, homeless shelters, and other buildings where individuals may be at a higher risk of experiencing an overdose. Increasing the availability of naloxone in public places can equip bystanders to save lives by providing access and instructions for naloxone administration. The visibility of naloxone boxes in public may also have the added benefit of  reducing the stigma associated with the life saving treatment.    

            Despite the benefits of naloxone boxes, the resource is limited in Ohio. There are only nine Naloxbox locations in Ohio – most of which are located in the Cincinnati, Cleveland, Akron, and Dayton areas. Please visit this link if you would like more information about how to implement a Naloxbox in your community. Additionally, there are other ways to access naloxone. Many pharmacies in Ohio have standing orders for naloxone. Project DAWN sites also offer naloxone and information on administration. If you’d like naloxone mailed directly to your home, please visit Harm Reduction Ohio’s website to order your kit. 

With unprecedented times comes unprecedented challenges, and the COVID-19 crisis has proven that to true, especially regarding drug-related overdoses. Recent studies indicate that substance-related overdoses and deaths are on the rise, with more than 35 states reporting increased mortality as a result of opioid use.

This rise is attributed to numerous factors, and the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Dr. Nora Volkow, discussed these contributors in a conversation published on the NIH’s Director’s Blog.

Dr. Volkow explained that many services that were previously available to individuals and families affected by substance use disorders are no longer accessible. Programs such as syringe exchanges, Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and hospital emergency departments are either shut down or operating with restricted hours and access. The added stress of not being able to access these programs compounds with the current strain of the pandemic. This could result in dire consequences as an increase in stress could lead to relapse and drug use.

Virtual visits and meetings with doctors, counselors, peers, family, or other support systems can be a lifesaver during this time of isolation. Decreased face-to-face interactions take an emotional toll on everyone, especially those at higher risk, so these virtual interactions are crucial.

Individuals with substance use disorders may be more vulnerable to COVID-19 because of the effects of drugs on the body, especially the pulmonary system. With pulmonary function being the primary target of COVID-19, individuals consuming drugs are at greater risk for experiencing heightened effects if the virus is contracted. Another risk is that individuals with substance use disorder are significantly less likely to have medical insurance than the rest of the population.

The NIDA website and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are resources that provide evidence-based information and treatment program information for people with substance use disorders. If you have a family member or friend who is struggling, these resources could be a lifesaver.

Kinship Caregivers are family and friends who step up and become responsible for raising a child when their parents cannot care for them. The child may live with kinship caregivers for a number of reasons. There are two types of kinship care, informal care is a private arrangement between the parents and caregiver, while formal care occurs when a child is in the custody of a public child welfare agency. The rights and responsibilities of caregivers vary based on these arrangements, so it is imperative the adults in these roles understand their responsibilities. 

Custodial agreements range from informal custody to kinship guardian, with legal custody and direct custody in between. The primary difference between non-custody and custody arrangements is the responsibility to make major life decisions regarding the child’s upbringing, education and medical needs. A caregiver can attain legal custody through a custody order by a judge, legal guardianship, which is generally granted in a probate court, or adoption, which gives complete legal guardianship over a child.

In both arrangements, the caregiver is responsible for providing a safe environment that meets the child’s basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter. The caregiver must provide the child with transportation to any required appointments and encourage social and recreational activities which are fundamental to a child’s growth and success. The caregiver should monitor the progress of the child’s social, academic and personal growth, and work with professionals as well as the child’s birth family to ensure positive development.

The children in kinship care often struggle to cope with complex feelings as a result of challenging family dynamics. Caregivers can provide emotional support by ensuring the child feels included and an equal member of the family.

Both the child and caregiver need a supportive, comfortable, and secure environment. Child welfare professionals should provide the caregivers with training and a support system to ensure a successful homelife for everyone involved. There should also be consistent communication to discuss and address challenges that may come with bringing a child into a new home. Caseworkers can provide support through offering therapy and support groups for families and children.

Source:

https://fosterandadopt.jfs.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/ofc/kinship-care/resources-for-kinship-caregivers/rights-and-responsibilities-kinship

Outdoor activity is essential to the mental and physical development of children, but children may not get enough outdoor playtime if parents fear their decision to let their children play outside alone will be reported as neglect. Unfortunately, due to a lack of resources, some parents must choose between letting their children play outside alone or not at all. 

Child Protective Services cannot always distinguish between neglect and more lenient  parenting practices. The systems in place to protect children from neglect can sometimes have adverse effects, especially in vulnerable communities that are more strictly monitored by authorities.

False reports of neglect are harmful to the accused families and distract from actual cases of child maltreatment. A report called Rethinking the Parenting Paradigm includes a health assessment of child protection policies in Montgomery County, Maryland from 2015. The results showed that:

• Fear of being reported to child protective services is one reason why parents limit outdoor freedom. 
• There is a higher risk of being reported for neglect than of actually being found neglectful. 
• Certain vulnerable populations are at higher risk of being reported and investigated, while not necessarily having a higher likelihood of neglecting their children or of leaving them unsupervised. 

The amount of time that children spend playing outdoors has significantly decreased over the years, and that time has a direct impact on long-term health. The average American child spends as little as 30 minutes of unstructured outdoor play a day and spending half as much time outdoors as they did 20 years ago. The lack of outdoor play is connected to long-term health issues such as obesity, anxiety, depression, and other developmental concerns.

Public debate on acceptable styles of parenting is polarized, and spans between two extreme styles of parenting: “helicopter” and “free range.” While responsible parenting allows for a wide range of behaviors, parents that exercise “free range” are more at risk of getting involved in child welfare systems.

The Ohio Children’s Trust Fund defines neglect in broad terms: not providing a child with food, shelter, medical care, education, supervision or clothes. But without laws that distinguish between neglect and “free range parenting”, child protective services may unintentionally harm the children it seeks to protect.

This is an area that CPS should continue to refine to provide the most valuable care to those who need it most.

The aggressive marketing and pharmaceutical sales of opioids in the past decade have left a devastating wake of addiction and death in the United States. Now, individuals who have been harmed by prescription opioids have the chance to file claims against Purdue Pharma, the maker of the painkiller OxyContin. Until July 30 of this year, people who have suffered from the effects of prescription opioid use will have the opportunity to seek compensation.

As of June 11, 2020, about 17,800 personal-injury claims have been filed by people who believe they or their loved ones were harmed by these prescription opioids.

Purdue Pharma is widely believed to be the instigator of the opioid epidemic. In 2019, the company declared bankruptcy which brought the more than 2,000 lawsuits against the company to a halt. “Purdue Pharma and its owner, the Sackler family, reportedly set aside $10 billion or more and put the company into a public trust to pay individual victims’ claims,” according to Newsomelaw.com. The company launched a $23.8 million advertising campaign to announce its opportunity for individuals to file claims.

This bankruptcy is unusual in that the implications of this company’s actions have spurred a national health crisis that has taken hundreds of thousands of lives and created a case for reparations beyond what can be quantified. It cemented a systemic crisis that will take years to undo.

It was also complicated by the sordid actions of the Sackler family, Purdue Pharma’s owners, who had transferred about $1 billion to foreign locations prior to filing bankruptcy. The case which involves Purdue Pharma filing for bankruptcy, also proposes a settlement worth more than $10 billion over time, plus $3 billion from the Sackler family over the next seven years, and an additional $1.5 billion from the sale of the family’s global pharmaceutical business, Mundipharma. It would also require that the family give up ownership of Purdue Pharma.

If you or a loved one has been harmed by the effects of opioids sold by Purdue Pharma, you can access a list of instructions on how to file a claim here.

In West Virginia, the growing opioid crisis demands more foster parents than ever before. Responsible adults are needed to raise children who have been affected and are no longer able to live safely in their homes.

According to an article by NBC News, the foster care system contains more than 7,000 children in West Virginia alone, and more than 83% open child abuse and neglect cases in West Virginia involve drugs.The number of children far outweighs the 4,000 licensed foster homes in the state. Foster parents are the heroes of the opioid crisis. They are providing children with safe home environments, and breaking the cycle of abuse that is embedded in families struggling with opioids.

Louisa and Nikki Snuffer are among those heroes. They are the parents of eight children from the West Virginia foster system who devote their lives to being full-time caregivers for these children, many of whom were born with physical and mental disabilities.

“It didn’t take long for Louisa and Nikki to realize that the trauma the children had been through would take years to process and heal,” Hannah Rappleye and Brenda Breslauer wrote, in the article ‘Love, over everything’: As West Virginia struggles with foster care crisis, families step up.

Nikki Snuffer, 35, hugs her daughter Harlow, 6 in Charleston. Snuffer and her wife Louisa adopted Harlow and seven other children impacted by the opioid epidemic. With slightly less than 4,000 licensed foster families, state officials are desperate to recruit families like the Snuffers. Hannah Rappleye / NBC News

When mothers use opioids throughout pregnancy, children are born with an inherent dependency on the drug. Without a healthy opportunity to live a clean life or the positive influences to abstain from drug use, the cycle repeats itself.

“The crisis has strained the system significantly,” Rachel Kinder, a program director at a foster and adoptive families nonprofit center, said. “Five years ago, my agency was happy to talk to 400 families who were considering being foster parents. Now, we talk to about 2,000 a year, and it’s never enough.”

Kelly May is a permanency facilitator at the Children’s Home Society, who works to place children in safe homes. Her job allows her to give back to children who have struggled in ways that she herself endured, as she entered the foster care system at 15 years old.

“We really need people who are committed” to becoming foster or adoptive parents, May said. “We are raising the next generation.”

The ECI program is excited to announce its partnership with Harm Reduction Ohio, a non-profit organization that supports drug policies based on science, health, compassion and human rights. HRO is the only layperson organization that is legally authorized to distribute naloxone in Ohio. For the duration of COVID-19 shutdowns, HRO is providing free naloxone across the state. The program will return to its normal distribution, aimed at people who use drugs and those directly in contact with them, once coronavirus restrictions are lifted.

HRO’s efforts are focused on mitigating negative impacts on people who are drug users. Some of their main objectives include reducing harm associated with drug use and policy, empowering people who use drugs to care for themselves and others, promoting health equity, educating about treating drug users without stigma, and ending criminalization of people who use drugs. The attached table and map includes information on Syringe Exchange Programs throughout Ohio, which overlap with some of the counties involved with ECI.

Visit the Harm Reduction Ohio website and click on the “Get Naloxone” page to order free naloxone.