Wednesday, January 15, 2025
1/15/2025
With funding from SAMHSA's Harm Reduction Program, St. John's Community Health (SJCH) proposes to establish comprehensive harm reduction services for low-income Latinx and Black/African American people (˜ 98% of population of focus) who use drugs (PWUD) residing in South Los Angeles. Many of our participants will be uninsured, undocumented, homeless/housing insecure, LGBTQ+, reentry, and have a substance use disorder (SUD) with co-occurring mental disorder (COD), HIV, and/or viral hepatitis. Our multi-modality, trauma-informed, peer-driven harm reduction program (HRP) will delivered by expertly trained staff at Avalon Health and Access Center, on our Homeless Services Mobile Clinic, during street-based outreach, and integrated into our continuum of programs that target similar populations. Services will include: overdose prevention education/naloxone distribution, syringe services, support services, and linkage to comprehensive services that address medical, behavioral health, and other social determinants of health-driven needs. Annual numbers of individuals to be served are 1,600 in Year, 2,500 in Year 2, and 3,000 in Year 3; a total of 4,000 unduplicated participants will receive services by our HRP. Our overarching goal to reduce the impact of drug-related harm in South LA through expanding access to comprehensive harm reduction services. Objectives include: (1) establishing the South LA Harm Reduction Right to Health Committee comprised of harm reduction service providers, PWUD, individuals in recovery, other residents impacted by substance use, and key community members; (2) conducting community-driven needs assessment, strategic and sustainability planning, policies and procedures development, and staff training on harm reduction best practices and evidence-based interventions to be used; (3) piloting, launching, and evaluating HRP services, engaging in quality improvement strategies to ensure the program is responsive to community need; and (4) designing and executing culturally and linguistically relevant public awareness campaigns addressing SUD/PWUD stigma and promoting widespread community naloxone access and distribution.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).