Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Overdose Response - Address: 403 East 11th Street Panama City, FL 32401-3409 Project Director Name: Drew Hild Contact Phone Numbers (Voice): (850) 747-5272 (Fax): (850) 872-4131 E-Mail Address: dhild@pancarefl.org Web Site Address: www.pancarefl.org Grant Program Funds Requested in the Application: $300,000 PanCare of Florida, Inc. (PanCare), a federally qualified health center (FQHC), serves residents of Bay, Walton, Liberty, Calhoun, Washington, Holmes, Franklin, Jackson, and Gulf counties in the Florida (FL) panhandle on the northern Gulf Coast. The health center receives special population funding to serve Migratory and Seasonal Agricultural Workers (MSAW) in its current service area, as well as in Leon and Gadsden counties. PanCare has a total of twenty service-delivery sites, including five mobile units and two school-based sites. In 2021, PanCare served 44,725 users, including 699 MSAWs, with 46,014 medical, 52,029 dental, 3,612 mental health (MH), and 1,054 SUD encounters (UDS, 2021). The center has an extensive telehealth program and provides both in-person and virtual visits to meet patient needs. PanCare is also the recipient of multiple Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) grants including RCORP Planning funds received in 2020; RCORP Implementation funds received in September 2021, and FY 2022 RCORP Behavioral Health Care Services (BHS) funds received in September 2022. Previous RCORP funding provides PanCare and PROP a solid foundation from which to launch FY 2023 RCORP-Overdose Response activities. The goal of the Overdose Response project is to address immediate needs in rural areas through improving access to, capacity for, and sustainability of prevention, treatment, and recovery services for substance use disorder (SUD). PanCare and PROP will build on previous RCORP grants by spreading components of a proven, state-funded approach, the Addiction Stabilization Model and CORE, which is already being implemented in Gulf County, to the remaining rural counties in PanCare’s service area, including Calhoun, Franklin, Jackson, Liberty, and Washington counties, FL. In addition to assuring emergency response for overdoses, this approach assures patients are stabilized and treated for coexisting medical and MH conditions, including dental care, primary care, psychiatric evaluation, maternal care, and social support services. PanCare is well positioned to provide these additional services. There are 107,074 residents of the 5-county region. Nearly half (44.4%) live with incomes below 200% FPG (ACS, Census, 2016-2020). Drug-induced mortality in the service area nearly doubled between 2015 and 2020, from 9.0 to 17.2 per 100,000. Between 2016 and 2020, 98 service area residents died from drug overdoses, a 96% increase since 2015 (age-adjusted; WONDER, CDC, 2011-2015, 2016-2020). Key activities for the RCORP-Overdose Response project include purchasing and distributing naloxone within the target rural service area; offering MAT waiver training; assisting uninsured individuals with SUD/OUD in the rural service area with obtaining health insurance and accessing SUD/OUD treatment and other BH and social services; enhancing capacity to provide mobile crisis intervention services for individuals with SUD/OUD; improving capacity for and access to telehealth treatment services for SUD/OUD; providing Continuing Education Units (CEU) as well as Continuing Medical Education Units (CME) which allow for providers to enhance their ability to provide care to individuals with SUD/OUD; establishing social services to support individuals in recovery; and providing community-based screenings for SUD/OUD and related infectious diseases.
