Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Impact - AdventHealth Manchester (AHM) (Memorial Hospital, Inc.) proposes to implement a Rural Community Opioid Response Impact Program entitled “RECOVER-Rural Empowerment for Community-Oriented Recovery” to improve access to integrated, coordinated treatment and recovery services for substance use disorders (SUD), including opioid use disorder (OUD), in rural areas of Southeastern Kentucky. AHM’s RECOVER program will initiate and expand coordinated and integrated treatment and recovery care for all impacted by SUD/OUD in the rural counties of Clay, Bell, Knox, and Jackson, Kentucky. RECOVER aims to address the SUD/OUD crisis in Southeastern Kentucky to promote long-term, sustained recovery. The target population for RECOVER includes those who are experiencing symptoms of SUD, in treatment for SUD, in recovery for SUD, are impacted by SUD, or are family members or caregivers of those in treatment or recovery for SUD including but not limited to adults, children/adolescents, and justice involved individuals. The project’s goals are: 1. Establish and expand coordinated, comprehensive SUD/OUD treatment and recovery services in rural Southeastern Kentucky, 2. Develop a responsive SUD workforce that includes peers and clinical providers with diverse scopes of practice, 3. Establish coordination with supportive social services to ensure optimized opportunities for sustained, long-term recovery, and 4. Ensure continued viability and sustainability of the RECOVER Program. Rural Appalachian Kentucky faces significant challenges with substance use disorder (SUD) and opioid use disorder (OUD). Kentucky experiences one of the highest opioid overdose mortality rates in the U.S. Overdose deaths, primarily involving opioids like fentanyl, have doubled since 2011. The region experiences high healthcare professional shortages, and the region has significant socio-economic challenges. RECOVER will bring integrated, collaborative solutions for treatment and recovery of SUD/OUD uniting five organizations in a joined effort to improve long-term recovery for the region’s populations. The organizations include the Clay County Detention Center, Second Chance Behavioral Health, Volunteers of America, and Cumberland River Behavioral Health along with AdventHealth Manchester. The project expects to provide OUD/SUD/MOUD treatment and recover care to 23,440 unduplicated individuals over a four year period.
