The Clark County Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Coalition approved its first strategic plan at a meeting held Friday, April 6 at the Clark County Combined Health District.
The plan was created to set clear goals and objectives for preventing drug abuse and providing recovery support in Clark County.
“It’s very important because we need it to guide the work that we do in the community to advance the coalition and the community in becoming a drug-free community,” said Wendy Doolittle, the Coalition’s chairperson and the Chief Executive Officer at local treatment facility McKinley Hall.
The coalition’s mission statement is to fight drug and alcohol addiction in Clark County by working collectively to provide resources and hope for our community.
The plan identifies three key objectives, including:
- Reduce substance abuse in Clark County
- Prevent substance abuse in Clark County
- Create a connected system that makes it easy to get qualified help for substance abuse.
A draft of the plan was approved at the meeting. A final version of the document will be finalized with updated statistics to create measurable outcomes later this spring.
“It’s an excellent plan,” Clark County Coroner Dr. Richard Marsh said. “I strongly support it. It’s comprehensive and hits most of the aspects involved in the drug crisis.”
The strategic plan was facilitated by Clark County Commissioner Melanie Flax Wilt, who volunteered her time for the project, and consultant Lori Houseman.
The coalition is also hiring a full-time coordinator through an $82,000 grant from the Cardinal Health Foundation to help facilitate its strategic plan.
The Board of Clark County Commissioners recently adopted is strategic plan through 2020. One of its five key objectives is to improve quality of life by eliminating opiate addiction and substance abuse in the community.
The Commission is working to improve public education, create more recovery support for individuals, enforce laws and collaborate with other community leaders.
The Board and Clark County Commissioners and the City of Springfield recently held a joint meeting to discuss the opioid crisis in the community. The Clark County Sheriff’s Office and the Springfield Police Division announced at the meeting it will be working together on drug enforcement activities in the future.
The coalition includes representatives from 21 different organizations in a variety of fields that touch substance abuse including local government, health care, mental health, treatment facilities and law enforcement. For more information, log on to clarkcountysac.org.
