SBC Opioid Task Force Newsletter Volume 2- Issue V - Apri 2021 | Website

Creating an informed accountable community to decrease opioid use and misuse. SBC OTF is a cross-collaborative community coalition dedicated to preventing substance use and saving lives.

Upcoming Meeting: May 20, 2021 10:00 - 11:30 am Our next meeting will be held again via Zoom on May 20, 2021 from 10:00 am to 11:30 am. A calendar reminder the week before will be sent from our AmeriCorps VISTA Marissa Gutierrez at [email protected]. We look forward to "seeing" you all then.

Updates

Click here to access these resources UPDATED: San Benito County Substance Use and Support Services Resource Guide and Pocket Guide We are happy to share with you the new and improved resource guide. The first version was created back in 2018. With this update all phone numbers and links have been verified along with the entirety of the guide translated into Spanish. Thank you to Public Health staff for helping to translate! Please Share and distribute this most important resource widely! Thank you all for being a part of these resources to our community, we hope this helps enable those seeking information or support ease of access. This is a living document, if you have any updates or information you would like to provide please email Veronica Johnson, [email protected] .

HHS Releases New Buprenorphine Practice Guidelines, Expanding Access to Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder In an effort to get evidence-based treatment to more Americans with opioid use disorder, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) is releasing new buprenorphine practice guidelines that among other things, remove a longtime requirement tied to training, which some practitioners have cited as a barrier to treating more people. Signed by HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, the Practice Guidelines for the Administration of Buprenorphine for Treating Opioid Use Disorder exempt eligible physicians, physician assistants, nurse practioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetists, and certified nurse midwives from federal certification requirements related to training, counseling, and other ancillary services that are a part of the process for obtaining a waiver to treat up to 30 patients with buprenorphine. Click Here for More Info

Hollister Police Department Collects 369 pounds of Medication

HPD hosted the hugely successful bi-annual DEA TakeBack Day on April 24, 2021. 369 pounds of medication collected in just this one day! In addition 10 full sharps containers were collected. Thank you to those of you who participated and helped spread the word. One of the simplest measures to saving lives starts with properly disposing of medication. If you missed HPD's event you can still drop by their lobby to dispose of medications in their anonymous collection bin or visit one of your local pharmacies and pick up a medication disposal envelope. Request for Free Med Disposal Envelopes

Open Registration for Youth Alliance's The Parent Project: Changing Destructive Adolescent Behavior Parent Support & Skills Workshop Via Zoom, Wednesday nights from 6pm to 8pm Youth Alliance will be holding the parent support and skills workshop which can help with: Understanding your teenager Addressing problematic behavior Recognizing substance use Establish house rules Promote family unity For more info contact: Jeanette Neal [email protected] 831-673-9963

County Supervisors Appoint Captain Taylor New Sheriff Beginning June 26, 2021 through Jan 2, 2023 Captain Eric Taylor will be the acting Sheriff Coroner. The San Benito County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the appointment and numerous community leaders voiced their support. Captain Taylor has been an invaluable key member of the SBC Opioid Task Force since inception in 2017. “Captain Taylor came to our community with vast experience and leadership,” Hooper states in her letter. “He is a role model for the office. He is respected not only by our sheriff’s office personnel but surrounding departments as well.”  Click here for the full article

Fentanyl Has Spread West and Overdoses Are Surging More than twice as many people died from drug overdoses as from Covid-19 in San Francisco last year Though fentanyl began to show up in San Francisco around 2015, only since 2018 has it become widely available, according to local officials, nonprofit workers and drug users. Overdose deaths in San Francisco increased 173% between 2018 and 2020. The pandemic has compounded the overdose crisis, according to public health officials. Isolation, stress and job loss drove many people to drugs; with homeless shelters and other congregant living spaces closed, addicts often used drugs alone. If they overdosed, no one was there to help them. In fact San Benito County has seen roughly 26% increase in overdoses in 2020 compared to 2019. Click here for the full article

Gavilan College's SBC County Campus Community Webinar Mark your calendars as the project of a new Gavilan College campus in San Benito County will benefit the whole of our community and your input is crucial. Click Here for More Info

It's not too late to register, click here to sign up Monterey County's Recovery Run is this Saturday! The goal of this event is to bring attention to the addiction problem and to encourage healthy lifestyles and to highlight successful community members in long-term recovery from addiction and give the friends and families of those who have lost their lives to addiction a chance to honor their memories. This year’s event is a virtual run/walk! All registrants will receive a race t-shirt that will be mailed in the first week of March. They are also asking everyone to upload a video or picture of themselves to social media utilizing #recoveryrun2021 showing their support and letting us know why they are doing the run. The virtual race event will be held on this Saturday, May 1st, 2021 and will highlight some of the pictures and videos that we receive.

Resources

Interactive Data Dashboard Now On Website With the help of some technical assistance from Andy Krackov of Hilcrest Advisory made possible by the California Overdose Prevention Network, we have launched our own interactive data dashboard on the SBC Opioid Task Force website. Thank you to those that contributed data for this project. If there is any data you would like to contribute or would like to see made available on this dashboard please message Veronica Johnson, [email protected] or share out at the next meeting. Click here to see this new feature Free Naloxone (NARCAN) & Trainings Available Free Narcan nasal spray is still available, if you haven't been trained you will be given a quick training on when and how to use the nasal spray. We are able to provide Narcan trainings as well to any agency or organization that would like it. If your Narcan has expired we can also dispose of it and replace it. For more info contact Veronica Johnson, [email protected] or fill out the form below  Request for free Narcan/Narcan Training

San Benito County Opioid Task Force | Website ‌ ‌

‌ ‌