Friday, December 27, 2024
12/27/2024
The aim of the Recovery Courts of Robeson County Expansion Project is to increase the capacity of recovery courts to incentivize treatment and recovery, resulting in healthy citizens, preservation of families, and reduced recidivism. This project will serve a total of 445 unduplicated individuals over a five-year period through the expansion of the Robeson County adult drug treatment court, family drug treatment court and DWI court. The geographic catchment area to be served is Robeson County, in southeastern North Carolina. Robeson County is a culturally and socially vibrant community that is also significantly disadvantaged and distressed. There are disproportionate rates of poverty and crime within this large rural county with a total population of approximately 116,530 over a 949 square mile area (US Census Bureau, 2020). Robeson County is home to the Lumbee Tribe (state-recognized tribe). Robeson County represents 10% of U.S. counties where racial minorities are the majority. Robeson County has the highest number of any county in the state of EMS Suspected Opioid Overdose Encounters (484) and the second highest number of Emergency Department visits for drug overdose (457) from 2022-2023 (NCDHHS, 2023). 30% of driving deaths in Robeson County involve alcohol (Healthy Robeson Task Force, 2020). In 2021, there were 366 children in foster care due to parental substance use disorders and 246 newborns affected by substance use (NCDHHS, 2023). The percentage of children that were in foster care due to parental substance use disorders was 69.7% in Robeson County versus 45.7% for the state of North Carolina (NCDHHS, 2023). The high rate of SUDs and SUD-related crimes in the County makes drug/recovery courts an effective method for increasing treatment utilization, however, the current drug court structure does not have the capacity to address the compounding need. The following measurable objectives will guide project implementation: ● By October 2023, a court administrator will be hired to oversee all three branches of recovery courts in Robeson County ● By January 2024, a joint recovery court policy protocol will be developed to increase coordination between courts ● By January 2024, and annually, recovery court teams will join to complete team building activities ● By January 2024, and ongoing, the court administrator will attend each court session across all courts to increase information-sharing and coordination across courts ● By January 2024, and ongoing, court staff and teams members will conduct an average of 1 outreach presentation/event per month with referral sources ● By January 2024, the court team will complete a comprehensive review of eligibility requirements and processes, recommend improvements, and implement changes ● Increase number of enrolled participants by 20% each year ● Provide recovery care coordination for 80% of court graduates ● By January 2024, culturally relevant messaging will be created, and reviewed/updated annually, to reflect the diversity of the community ● By December 2023, court staff and teams, program materials, and policies will use inclusive language and reflect explicit anti-discrimination policies ● By December 2023, a court advisory board will be formed to include diverse court participants ● 80% of participants will report overall positive satisfaction with the program ● 65% of participants will report an increased capacity for recovery ● Increase number of FDTC graduates by 30% each year ● Family reunifications for SUD-related child welfare cases will increase by 15% each year ● Increase number of ADTC and DWI Court graduates by 30% each year ● The two-year recidivist incarceration rate among court graduates will not exceed 30%
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).