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Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith and Family Awarded $50,000 Grant to Help Address Opioid Epidemic

Governor Doug Ducey announced that the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith and Family (GOYFF) has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). The grant will be administered by the Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism to help address Arizona’s opioid crisis.

The funding will enable the commission to assist eligible organizations in applying for future AmeriCorps grants focused on combating the opioid epidemic.
“This grant will go a long way in ensuring that good organizations have the resources they need to help those suffering from substance abuse,” said Governor Ducey. “There is a nationwide opioid epidemic occurring right now and Arizona is taking significant measures to stop it in its tracks. This is the latest win in an ongoing battle. This administration will continue to fight and work alongside community partners to curb opioid abuse in Arizona.”

“In 2015, Arizona experienced more than 1,100 acute drug overdoses,” said GOYFF Director Debbie Moak. “Our goal is to prevent as many overdose deaths as possible and to ensure that all Arizonans suffering from substance abuse have access to the treatment and support services they need.”
CNCS’s mission is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic participation through service and volunteering. Through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, CNCS has helped to engage millions of citizens in meeting community and national challenges through service and volunteer action.

Governor Ducey signed two bills last session aimed at preventing and treating opioid addiction in Arizona.

SB1283 targets “doctor shopping” by requiring physicians in Arizona to access and update the Controlled Substance Prescription Monitoring Program (CSPMP) database before prescribing a controlled substance to a patient.

HB 2355 allows a pharmacist to dispense Naloxone without a prescription to a person at risk of experiencing an opioid-related overdose, a family member or community member in a position to assist that person.

Meadows Out Patient Center in Network

The Meadows Outpatient Center is now an in-network provider with Blue Cross Blue Shield and Humana insurance carriers making The Meadows’ cutting-edge services and resources accessible to more people than ever before.

“Many people in the community have wanted to be able to utilize The Meadows quality care, but before today, could not for various reasons. Now an in-network provider for BCBS and Humana, these people have access to the same state of the art quality of care available at a Meadows’ facility” says Jim Corrington, Jr., MSW, LCSW, Director of Outpatient Serices.
“This is a huge development that will open the door for many people to admit directly to one of our comprehensive outpatient programs and receive high quality treatment for addiction and trauma.”

Outpatient Program Services

Patients benefit from up to 20 hours of available services per week, which can include:
12 hours of group therapy weekly
1-2 hours of individual counseling weekly
Psychiatry consultations
BrainPaint Neurofeedback
CBT, Somatic Experiencing
EMDR and Acupuncture
Brain Spa open all day
Expressive art therapy
Trauma-sensitive yoga
Sexual Addiction/Intimacy Disorders
Claudia Black Young Adult IOP—18-26 years of age
Family Involvement and Family Recovery Group
Multifamily Group and Aftercare
Recovery Enhancement Group
Inspired Recovery Alumni Group
For information or an immediate need, 800-244-4949 or visit https://www.themeadowsiop.com.

Are Study Drugs Helpful or Harmful?

Teens’ lives today are jam-packed and many are stressed out and anxious. Instead of coping in healthy ways, some are abusing prescription stimulants not prescribed to them — also known as “study drugs.” These are medicines that are used to treat Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) such as Adderall, Concerta and Ritalin — but are abused to pull all-nighters and cram for exams. Most don’t see this behavior as risky. But stimulants that are not prescribed to them? Is this safe or are there real dangers?

The data is showing overall stimulant medications do not improve your cognitive performance. If you have someone that is performing optimally, and you give them a stimulant, the performance may deteriorate.

If you’re giving stimulant medications to a kid that doesn’t have ADHD, at the time in their life when their brain is developing very rapidly that may interfere with those developmental processes.

When someone is abusing stimulants, the effects can be not very dissimilar to those that you observe with cocaine or methamphetamine — all of these are stimulant drugs.

When you are dealing with adolescents, which is the period of higher risk, that’s why you have to be particularly careful, because even though they may not have the genetic vulnerability, they’re at a stage in their life where exposure to drugs can create changes in the brain that may result in addictive behaviors.

Stimulant abuse can produce full-blown psychosis. So you can end up in an emergency room because you are basically completely paranoid. It can be very severe, and devastating to the person. It does have deleterious effects.

New Program Fights Substance Use in GLBTQA Young Adults

By Wesley Perdue, MS, MAC
Building Blocks Counseling (BBC) has been awarded a contract with MMIC/AHCCCS to provide intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment services to young adults ages 18-25, who identify as LGBTQ or a supportive ally

This program is offered at no charge to those receiving MMIC/AHCCCS, and is also available to others with insurance, or those paying privately.

“It is estimated that between 20 percent to 30 percent of gay and transgendered people abuse substances, compared to about 9 percent of the general population,” (Hunt, J. Center for American Progress. 3/9/2012).

A combination of factors can impact this dynamic, and vary from study to study, but common factors often include: the influence of stress from stigma and discrimination, a lack of cultural competency among those in social services who are trying to assist, and the fact that a great deal of socialization among this community takes place in bars and nightclubs, due to the sense of belonging and safety people feel while in these environments.

At the heart of its mission, BBC strives to meet the needs of those who are often the invisible, feared, discriminated against or misunderstood members our society. Whether it be a member of a gender or sexual minority, a person who is homeless or struggles with unstable or insufficient housing, or someone who was formerly incarcerated and is now returning to the community, learning how to be a successful and integral part of society…BBC is that community partner, ready and willing to assist.

As part of its commitment to these young people, BBC has partnered with one-n-ten, a local organization focused on serving the needs of LGBTQ youth and young adults for more than 23 years.
Two former co-chairs of one-n-ten are part of BBC’s leadership, and share deep personal concern and commitment to serving the needs of these young people. one-n-ten staff will also be providing ongoing cultural sensitivity training to the BBC staff, and referring young people in-need to these services.

BBC is located at 4225 W Glendale Avenue, Ste. E-108, Phoenix, AZ 85051. 602-626-8112.

Get to know one·n·ten

one•n•ten envisions a world where all LGBTQ youth and young adults are embraced for who they are, actively engaged in their communities, and empowered to lead.

The mission is to serve LGBTQ youth and young adults ages 14-24, to enhance their lives by providing empowering social and service programs that promote self‐expression, self‐acceptance, leadership development and healthy life choices.

one•n•ten is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving and assisting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. We provide youth with tools to improve self-esteem and self-acceptance.

Youth range in age from 14 to 24. We create a safe space, mentally and physically, for youth of all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. Our weekly discussion groups cover a wide range of social, educational, health and community issues.
For more details visit onenten.org