AFMC, Consortium Members, and Community Collaborators work together to implement prevention, treatment, recovery, and foundational core activities throughout rural communities in Northeast Arkansas.
RCORP-Implementation 2022 Activities
Foundational Activities
- Track and collect aggregate data and other information from Consortium members to fulfill HRSA reporting requirements and use data to support continuous improvement of services and activities.
- Develop processes for achieving financial and programmatic sustainability beyond the period of performance, including (but not limited to) training providers, administrative staff, and other relevant stakeholders to optimize reimbursement for clinical encounters through proper coding and billing across insurance types.
- Address the SUD-related needs of populations that have historically suffered from poorer health outcomes or health disparities as compared to the rest of the target population.
- Leverage partnerships at the local/community, state and regional levels including with rural counties and municipalities, health plans, law enforcement, community recovery organizations and others to secure buy-in for the proposed project and ensure that it complements (versus duplicates) existing SUD/OUD resources.
Prevention Activities
- Support culturally and linguistically appropriate substance use prevention activities and evidence-based programs delivered in diverse environments and to diverse participants.
- Increase access to naloxone within the target rural service area and provide training on overdose prevention and naloxone administration for community members likely to respond to an overdose.
- Train and strengthen collaboration with and between law enforcement and first responders to enhance their capability of responding and/or providing emergency treatment to those with SUD/OUD.
- Train community members and other stakeholders on safe storage and disposal of prescription drugs with the potential for misuse.
- Identify and screen individuals at risk for SUD/OUD and co-occurring disorders/infections complications (including HIV, viral hepatitis, mental illness, etc.) and provide or make referrals to prevention, harm reduction, early intervention, treatment, and other support services.
Treatment/Recovery Activities
- Recruit, train, mentor, and retain interdisciplinary teams of clinical and social service providers to support an integrated approach to SUD/OUD treatment, including evidence-based behavioral therapy, US FDA-approved pharmacotherapy, and any other necessary supportive services.
- Create community linkages and referral systems for a seamless entry into MAT/SUD treatment for primary care, emergency departments, law enforcement/first responders, community-based organizations, social service organizations, etc.
- Ensure linkages to and coordination with home and community-based social services to support individuals in recovery, including those discharged from inpatient treatment facilities and/or the criminal justice system.
- Expand the peer workforce to provide support in various settings, including hospitals, emergency departments, law enforcement departments, jails, SUD/OUD treatment programs, and in the community.
- Support the development of recovery support services such as recovery community organizations, recovery homes, mutual aid groups, and other recovery resources and infrastructure to expand the availability of and access to recovery support services.
Additional Core Activity
- Provide support for pregnant and postpartum women to enter and adhere to family-centered OUD treatment, reduce the risk of relapse, and prevent, reduce, and manage medical complications in newborns and other children using approaches that minimize stigma and other barriers to care, and support the long-term recovery of women.
RCORP-Implementation 2020 Activities
Prevention Activities
- Educate to improve understanding of evidence-based prevention, treatment, and recovery strategies for substance use disorder (SUD)/opioid use disorder (OUD) and to reduce the stigma associated with the disease.
- Increase access to naloxone within the rural service area and provide training on overdose prevention and naloxone administration to ensure that individuals likely to respond to an overdose can take the appropriate steps to reverse an overdose.
- Implement year-round drug take-back programs.
- Increase and support the use of school- and community-based prevention programs that are evidence-based to prevent misuse of opioids and other substances.
- Identify and screen individuals at risk for SUD/OUD and provide or make referrals to prevention, harm reduction, early intervention, treatment, and other support services to minimize the potential for the development of SUD/OUD.
Treatment Activities
- Screen and provide or refer treatment to patients with SUD/OUD who have infectious complications, including HIV, viral hepatitis, and endocarditis, particularly among persons who inject drugs.
- Recruit, train and mentor interdisciplinary teams of SUD/OUD clinical and social service providers who are trained, certified, and willing to provide medication-assisted treatment, including both evidence-based behavioral therapy and FDA-approved pharmacotherapy.
- Increase the number of providers and other health and social service professionals who can identify and treat SUD/OUD by providing professional development opportunities and recruitment incentives, such as the National Health Service Corps.
- Train providers, administrative staff, and other relevant stakeholders to optimize reimbursement for treatment encounters through proper coding and billing across insurance types to ensure the financial sustainability of services.
- Reduce barriers to treatment by supporting integrated treatment and recovery, including integration with behavioral health, the criminal justice system, dentistry, and social services, and as appropriate, provide support to pregnant women, children, and other at-risk populations using approaches that minimize stigma and other barriers to care.
Recovery Activities
- Enhance discharge coordination for people leaving inpatient treatment facilities and/or the criminal justice system who require linkages to home and community-based services and social supports, including case management, housing, employment, food assistance, transportation, medical and behavioral health services, faith-based organizations and sober/transitional living facilities.
- Expand the peer workforce and programming as interventionists in various settings, including hospitals, emergency departments, law enforcement departments, jails, SUD/OUD treatment programs, and in the community.
- Support the development of recovery communities, recovery coaches, and recovery community organizations to expand the availability of and access to recovery support services.
Sustainability
- Work with insurers and policymakers to address reimbursement for SUD/OUD treatment services.
- Coordinate with community organizations to reach the uninsured in the project counties.