ADAMHS board has plans for drug funding

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

A recent grant of nearly a million dollars awarded to the local Alcohol Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) board will allow for the creation and expansion of innovative programs that focus on the needs of drug addicts.

Sandy Goodwin, executive director of the Tri County ADAMHS Board, which provides services in Van Wert, Paulding, and Mercer counties, talked this week about the $931,911.59 awarded locally as part of the second round of State Opioid Response (SOR) grant funding.

Goodwin said her agency started planning a couple of months ago to apply for the SOR 2.0 funding that was announced this week. Each ADAMHS board had to apply for the competitive grants, which are administered by the state using federal money allocated for innovative drug addiction programs.

“We really tried to touch on the complete continuum of care — prevention, treatment, and recovery,” she said, noting that the needs of addicts can include not only drug treatment, but also services such as housing and transportation, and peer support, as well as psychiatric treatment for users who become addicted while trying to “self-medicate” mental health issues. “We really tried to take a broader approach.”

Goodwin said drug addiction services are especially needed now because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its related stresses, which has increased the problem of drug addiction in America.

The Tri County staff developed 15 projects for the grant application that focused on five need areas for addicts: prevention, treatment, transportation, community-based housing, and workforce development.

“We got most of what we asked for, but not everything,” Goodwin said.

The funding that was received will go to the three Tri County agencies — Westwood Behavioral Health Center in Van Wert, Westwood North in Paulding County, and Foundations in Mercer County — and be used to expand existing services, as well as develop new programs providing “wrap-around” services for drug addicts.

Psychiatric services will be expanded to focus on the needs of addicts with mental health issues, a substantial percentage of the addict population, while prevention and awareness programs, including a media campaign that targets addicts, will also be created or expanded. Auxiliary services would also include the creation of youth groups that focus on drug addiction and related issues.

Transportation is another important need for many addicts, Goodwin said, noting that many addicts don’t have vehicles or other means of getting to treatment appointments and other treatment services.

Housing is another important need for addicts, since many are homeless because they spend most of their money on drugs, leaving little left for rent or house payments. That leads to eviction.

“A lot of time, by the time they get treatment, they’ve burned all their bridges and lost almost everything, including their kids,” Goodwin explained.

She said the new funding will allow Tri County to hire a housing coordinator that will work in all three service counties to create relationships with property owners to develop an inventory of available housing for recovering addicts.

It’s a program Goodwin said she hopes can be continued after the 18-month SOR 2.0 grant term ends, since housing is a critical need for recovering addicts.

Tri County also hopes to expand its workforce development program created to provide employment for recovering addicts, many of whom have felony convictions related to their drug use.

Another need is for certified peer recovery supporters: former drug users who know what recovering addicts are going through and can provide needed support to keep them off drugs.

“It kind of gives a different perspective for a recovering addict to be able to say ‘I have someone right next to me that’s been there too”,” Goodwin said, noting that expansion is important because the program has been very successful.

One new program will be development of a “Get Help Now” app that will provide information on drug addiction and local treatment and support resources.

Goodwin said the funding is very welcome at this point in time, since treatment and support are critical to helping addicts recover and build a new, drug-free life.

“This is really going to allow us to really wrap a lot of support and services around these folks that really need it,” she said.