Rural Behavioral Health will be hosting a webinar on Thursday, July 19 on The Impact of the Opioid Epidemic on Children and Youth in Rural Communities: How Schools and Communities are Responding. The webinar is free and will provide strategies for schools and community-based organizations in addressing the issue in rural communities.
The Impact of the Opioid Epidemic on Children and Youth in Rural Communities- How Schools and Communities are Responding
July 19, 2018, 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time
In the U.S. opioid overdoses accounted for more than 42,000 deaths in 2016, more than any previous year on record. An estimated 40% of opioid overdose deaths involved a prescription opioid (https://www.hhs.gov/opioids/about-the-epidemic/index.html). The opioid epidemic has devastating impact across the country and in particular for children, youth and families in rural communities. In fact “rates of drug-related deaths in rural areas has surpassed those in urban centers (https://www.usda.gov/topics/opioids). Strategies to address this epidemic must take approaches that focus on prevention, intervention and treatment. Successful implementation of these strategies will also require a comprehensive public health approach involving multiple service systems include schools in rural communities. This webinar will discuss strategies necessary to build the capacity of rural communities to address the needs of children, youth and families who are victims of this epidemic in rural communities.
Participants in this webinar will learn about:
- The impact of the opioid epidemic in rural communities through the presentation of data related to causes and drivers;
- Federal, state and local efforts to address this crisis in rural communities through prevention, intervention and treatment service and supports;
- The role of schools and community-based organizations in addressing the issue for children, youth and families; and,
- Available funding for rural communities to address the opioid epidemic
Jennifer Loeffler-Cobia, MS, Senior Researcher, American Institutes for Research
Grace Schoessow, MS, Early Childhood Mental Health Coordinator, Greene County Educational Service Center
Facilitator: Karen Francis, Ph.D., Principal Researcher, American Institutes for Research (AIR)
Rural Behavioral Health is a joint program of the American Institutes for Research (AIR), the Mental Health Promotion Branch, Center for Mental Health Services, at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and Affirma Solutions Inc.
Register for the program here.