Friday, July 26, 2024
7/26/2024
In 2017, almost 80% of Missouri's opioid overdose deaths occurred in nine of its 115 counties. The proposed project, Connecting the DOTS (Drug Overdose Trust and Safety), will reduce the number of fatal opioid overdoses in Missouri and facilitate treatment and recovery service referrals for overdose survivors. DOTS will provide innovative and collaborative public-health and occupational safety-oriented training to first responders and equip them, and members of other key community sectors, with naloxone. The Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH) - Division of Behavioral Health (DBH), which provides oversight for the SAMHSA funded Missouri Heroine Overdose Prevention and Education (MO-HOPE) project, will lead this program in partnership with the University of Missouri - St. Louis, Missouri Institute of Mental Health (UMSL-MIMH), the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), which leads the SAMHSA funded Missouri Overdose Rescue and Education (MORE) project, Safety and Heath Integration in the Enforcement of Laws on Drugs (SHIELD) collaborators at Northeastern University, the Missouri Hospital Association and Behavioral Health Network of greater St. Louis, and local public health departments and emergency response agencies in Missouri's highest risk counties. Constituting an expansion of the generalized overdose education and response training provided through the MO-HOPE and MORE projects targeting eastern and rural Missouri counties, respectively, the DOTS project will leverage existing infrastructure, tailor the evidence-based SHIELD training to fit local needs and address all types of first responder audiences, enhance occupational safety, and bridge the gap in post-overdose recipient of care. Simply put, the DOTS project will "connect the dots" between overdose prevention and response initiatives across Missouri. DOTS will follow a three-pronged approach: 1) facilitation of cross-sectoral and collaborative curriculum adaptation and train-the-trainer workshops; 2) delivery of occupational safety and public-health oriented overdose response training for first responders, focusing on hotspot areas in high-need counties with unmet need; and 3) implementation of secondary prevention strategies, including the distribution of naloxone. The five primary goals of the DOTS program are to: 1) expand access to occupational safety and public-health oriented training through locally-led adaptation of the SHIELD curriculum to include non-police emergency responders and online modules; 2) implement SHIELD training to improve police practices, responders' ability to respond safely and effectively to overdose events, and attitudes that promote both occupational safety and public health-minded practices; 3) reduce the number of fatal opioid overdose events in Missouri through naloxone distribution; 4) improve first responders' ability to make appropriate post-overdose service referrals by increasing the number and quality of collaborations between first responders and community treatment, recovery, and social service providers; 5) increase the number of overdose survivors who are connected to treatment and/or recovery services following an overdose event.
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).
