The Bulloch County Alcohol and Drug Council (BADC) is partnering with the Decatur Prevention Initiative (DPI) to seek funding for a Strategic Prevention Framework-Partnership for Success (SPF-PFS) grant to prevent the onset of and reduce the progression of substance abuse. The proposed SPF-PFS project will build capacity and expand the prevention infrastructure in Bulloch County and the City of Decatur, Georgia. The focus will be on underage alcohol use and the use of opioids and cocaine among youth from 9-20 years of age, using a rigorous Strategic Prevention Framework planning, implementation, and evaluation protocol. Based on an extensive needs assessment, this project will build capacity to provide data-driven evidence-based individual and environmental prevention programs, policies and practices. Specific attention will be given to identifying and serving any sub-population vulnerable to behavioral health disparities. While some of these populations are more readily identified (i.e., economic, racial and ethnic minority groups), other groups will require more extensive outreach (i.e., the LGBTQ community, victims of abuse, children impacted by familial substance abuse or those with mental health issues). This project will build partnerships with those who can help identify these groups and strategically plan specific ways to serve them. These two agencies have a combined 67 years' experience in providing prevention services in their communities. Each community will strategically implement this project to enhance any existing efforts, to expand the types of substances addressed and to provide services to those currently under-served. Because they each have instituted different programs over the years, this partnership among communities will allow for sharing past successful strategies and leveraging each community's strength.
One community is more rural (Bulloch County), and one is urban (Decatur), yet each is concerned about the consequences of underage drinking and its long-term impact on the young brain. Bulloch County has 74,722 residents, with 64% White, 28% African-American, 4% Hispanic, 2% Asian and 2% multiracial. Almost one third (31.3%) live in poverty, compared to the state at 24.7%. Most live in more rural parts of the county. Decatur has 22,813 residents, with 64% White, 28% African American, 4% Hispanic, 2% Asian and 2% multiracial. Decatur has the largest per capita same-sex household rate in the country. Decatur also has great economic disparities, with the White household income growing 10% (2000-2010), while the African American household income declined by 50%. Eleven percent of those in public housing are foreign born (predominantly African), which presents parental cultural and language challenges. Decatur has the highest rate of twelfth-grade alcohol use in Georgia. Both communities have colleges at the city centers, which have a significant impact on decisions about underage alcohol use. Each community has a high density of on-site alcohol retail establishments. From 2017 to 2018, each community has seen a significant increase in high school youth reporting heroin use (Bulloch 0 to 68 youth, Decatur 0 to 23 youth). Unlike alcohol and heroin, cocaine is not included in the annual high school survey, currently leaving a data gap to be addressed. Key informants (law enforcement, students and treatment professionals) are noting an increase in cocaine use. Also, a recent cocaine bust in the nearby port city was the largest seizure in that area's history. With a reported national resurgence in the use of cocaine and the increased prevalence of substances like fentanyl being added to both heroin (opioids) and cocaine, these two substances present a critical health concern that must be addressed. This grant's environmental strategies will target entire communities, impacting over 97,500 residents annually. Individual strategies focusing on high-risk youth will reach at least 200 youth annually.
