Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Impact - Kee Cha-E-Nar Corporation, a tribally chartered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of the Yurok Tribe, proposes the Yurok Rural Recovery and Resilience Initiative to expand coordinated, evidence-based substance use disorder (SUD) prevention, treatment, recovery, and supportive services throughout rural Humboldt County, Del Norte County, and the Yurok Reservation. The project will address significant barriers to care, including geographic isolation, transportation challenges, workforce shortages, housing instability, limited treatment capacity, and fragmented service systems that contribute to high rates of substance use disorders, behavioral health disparities, justice involvement, and unmet treatment and recovery needs. The project will serve individuals experiencing or at risk for SUD, including opioid use disorder (OUD), with a focus on Tribal citizens, justice-involved individuals, people with co-occurring behavioral health conditions, families involved in child welfare proceedings, and individuals experiencing housing instability. Services will be delivered through a collaborative network that includes the Yurok Tribal Court, North Coast Health Improvement and Information Network (NCHIIN), Skyway House, healthcare providers, behavioral health providers, housing organizations, recovery service providers, Tribal departments, and other community partners. Project activities will expand access to screening and assessment, case management, treatment navigation, recovery support services, medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), residential treatment, transportation assistance, housing stabilization support, benefits enrollment assistance, and referrals to healthcare and supportive services. Through NCHIIN’s North Coast Care Connect Community Information Exchange platform, network partners will utilize coordinated referral processes, care coordination tools, service tracking, and closed-loop referrals to improve continuity of care and reduce fragmentation across systems. The project will support all four RCORP-Impact goals by expanding direct SUD prevention, treatment, and recovery services; increasing access to supportive social services; strengthening the rural behavioral health and recovery workforce; and enhancing network engagement and sustainability. Workforce activities will include the addition of three Case Workers, ongoing professional development, clinical consultation, and training in trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and recovery-oriented practices. Expected outcomes include increased access to prevention, treatment, recovery, and supportive services; improved treatment engagement and retention; expanded access to MOUD and behavioral health services; improved care coordination and referral completion; increased workforce capacity; strengthened network partnerships; and improved long-term recovery and wellness outcomes for rural and Tribal communities throughout Humboldt County, Del Norte County, and the Yurok Reservation. The project will establish a sustainable, community-based system of care that integrates Tribal, healthcare, behavioral health, recovery, housing, and social service resources to improve outcomes for individuals and families affected by substance use disorders.
