Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Impact - The Rural Expansion of Substance use Prevention, Treatment, Outreach, Recovery, and Engagement (RESTORE) project will improve access to integrated, coordinated, and sustainable opioid and substance use disorder (OUD/SUD) services across six rural Northeast Georgia counties. Building on established regional partnerships and prior efforts to strengthen care coordination, screening, referral pathways, and recovery supports, RESTORE will address persistent gaps in treatment capacity, behavioral health services, recovery infrastructure, and workforce availability. RESTORE will increase access to prevention, treatment, recovery, and supportive services; expand workforce capacity; build stronger recovery community infrastructure, including establishment of a new RCO; improve service coordination; and enhance long-term recovery and quality-of-life for rural residents affected by OUD/SUD. RESTORE serves Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Hart, Jackson, and Oglethorpe counties, all designated as primary care and mental health shortage areas. The region includes approximately 233,000 residents and experiences elevated rates of overdose, opioid related mortality, behavioral health conditions, and substance use related family disruption. Residents face significant barriers to care, including poverty, transportation challenges, broadband limitations, provider shortages, and limited healthcare infrastructure. Most counties lack local substance use treatment and buprenorphine providers, and only half have an established RCO. These challenges are compounded by high rates of behavioral health conditions, limited employment opportunities, and unmet recovery support needs. RESTORE will expand direct OUD/SUD services by establishing or expanding treatment services in three primary care clinics and one local jail. Services will include SBIRT, MOUD, MAT, naloxone distribution, evidence-based school prevention programs, jail transition services, peer recovery coaching, and reentry support. Supportive services will include transportation assistance, care coordination, employment coaching and mentorship, food and nutrition support, insurance navigation, and strengthened referral pathways to improve engagement, retention, and long-term recovery outcomes. RESTORE will expand workforce capacity by increasing the number of providers offering MOUD and MAT, training and placing Certified Peer Specialist-Addictive Disease professionals, promoting Certified Peer Specialist-Youth and -Parent certifications, embedding care coordinators within MedLink Georgia clinics, and developing a Community Health Worker Recovery Support Certificate program through Augusta University. The project will also strengthen recovery infrastructure by providing leadership and organizational development training for existing RCO staff, establishing a new RCO, and facilitating the development of a regional RCO Association. The RESTORE network is led by Augusta University and includes MedLink Georgia, Georgia Council for Recovery, and Reboot Jackson and Self-Discovery 24 RCOs. Together, we will deliver and expand prevention, treatment, recovery, workforce development, and community engagement activities. A Community Advisory Board composed of healthcare, education, justice, community, and lived experience representatives will provide guidance to support implementation, sustainability, and continuous quality improvement across the region.
