Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Impact - The proposed RCORP-Impact project will expand access to integrated, coordinated, and sustainable substance use disorder services, including opioid use disorder treatment, throughout Connecticut’s Northwest Hills Planning Region. The project will address opioid use, polysubstance use, overdose risk, and related behavioral health and social needs by expanding direct prevention, treatment, and recovery services; strengthening supportive service navigation; developing the rural substance use disorder workforce; and sustaining a multi-sector network capable of addressing the root causes of addiction and improving long-term outcomes. The project will be implemented by an RCORP consortium operating under the broader Litchfield County Opiate Task Force coalition. Consortium partners include McCall Behavioral Health Network, Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Community Health & Wellness Center, Torrington Area Health District, New England Rural Health Association, Apex Community Care, and faith-based partners. Together, the consortium will expand same-day access to Medication for Opioid Use Disorder, pilot a Mobile Medical Unit, establish walk-in clinic services, increase peer recovery and emergency department-based supports, expand overdose prevention education, strengthen supportive service navigation, and improve connections to healthcare, behavioral health, recovery supports, and social services. The project will also strengthen community-based prevention through partnerships with trusted rural stakeholders, including libraries and faith communities, and will expand workforce capacity through provider engagement, rural clinical rotations, professional development scholarships, peer support, and workforce wellness strategies. By leveraging existing regional partnerships and the longstanding infrastructure of the Litchfield County Opiate Task Force, the project will increase access to whole-person, evidence-based services and build sustainable systems of care for rural residents and families impacted by substance use disorder.
