Liberty, NY – Sullivan County officials are excited to join 33 other communities across New York, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Ohio in launching the first communications campaign in support of their participation in the Healing Communities Study.
Running from October 3-December 2, 2022, the campaign is focused on raising awareness of the dangers of illicit fentanyl, a drug that is present in more than three-quarters of the 2,000+ overdose deaths that occur in New York each year (source: NY State Opioid Annual Report 2021).
In addition to sharing facts about the dangers of illicit fentanyl, the Healing Communities Study campaign teaches ways to protect loved ones and community members from a fatal fentanyl overdose, including:
• Knowing the signs and how to respond to an overdose.
• Getting trained and carrying naloxone (commonly as Narcan®), an FDA-approved medication that can save someone’s life if they are overdosing on opioids, whether it is a prescription opioid pain medicine, heroin, or a drug containing fentanyl.
“This campaign and study are informed by and complement the work we do every day in our Health & Human Services Division,” notes John Liddle, commissioner of that division. “Our goal is to have a significant impact on not just those wrestling with substance use but the community at large, because we are all affected by this disease.”
About the Healing Communities Study
The National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimates that 2.1 million Americans have opioid use disorder (OUD), yet fewer than 20% of those receive specialty care in a given year. New York State is not immune from opioid overdose deaths, and Sullivan County has the highest rate in the State.
A menu of evidence-based practices (EBPs) exists, including opioid overdose education and Narcan distribution programs, prescription opioid safety, FDA-approved medications for opioid use disorder, behavioral therapies, and recovery support services. The National Institutes of Health and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration launched the Healing Communities Study to identify the EBPs that are most effective at the local level in preventing and treating OUD. The goal of the study is to reduce opioid-related overdose deaths by 40 percent.
The first phase of the study, which ended June 30, occurred in Cayuga, Columbia, Greene, Erie, Lewis, Putnam, Suffolk, and Ulster Counties. The second phase of the study is running through December 2023 in Broome, Chautauqua, Cortland, Genesee, Monroe, Orange, Sullivan, and Yates counties. In support of this work, Sullivan County is collaborating with local partners to launch three communications campaigns:
1. Narcan and Fentanyl Education,
2. Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) Awareness, and
3. MOUD Treatment Retention.
To learn more about the Healing Communities Study and to help end overdoses in Sullivan County, visit:
• Website: www.healingcommunitiesstudy.org/communities/nysullivan.html
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/sullivancountygov
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/sullivancountygov