COALITION NEWS

Community youth substance use prevention coalitions, law enforcement agencies, and community organizations in Southwest Washington are collaborating to host drive‐thru drug take‐back events at different locations in Clark County on Saturday, October 28, from 10am - 2pm.

Clark county community members are encouraged to bring their unused and expired prescriptions and over‐the‐counter medications for safe, free drop-off and disposal to any one of the following event sites:

Clark County (download event flyer):

• Walgreens Cascade Park - 13503 SE Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver, WA
• PeaceHealth Memorial Campus - 33rd & Main St. (South Back Lot), Vancouver, WA
• Battle Ground Police Department - 507 SW 1st St., Battle Ground, WA
• Washougal Police Department - 1320 A St., Washougal, WA
• La Center Police Department - 105 W 5th St., La Center, WA

Southwest Washington residents that live in Skamania or Klickitat Counties can dispose of unused meds in year-round disposal kiosks at the following locations:

Skamania County:

• Skamania County Sheriff ‐ 200 Vancouver Ave., Stevenson, WA
• Wind River Pharmacy - 280 2nd St., Stevenson, WA

Klickitat County:

• Hi-School Pharmacy #3500 - 291 E. Jewett Blvd, White Salmon, WA
• Skyline Hospital - 211 NE Skyline Dr. White Salmon, WA
• Klickitat Valley Health Hospital - 310 Roosevelt St. Goldendale, WA
• Goldendale Pharmacy - 104 W Main St. Goldendale, WA

All prescription and over‐the‐counter medications including pills, liquids and inhalers will be accepted for free disposal at any of the drive‐thru disposal events. Medications not in original containers will also be accepted. Community‐based medicine take‐back events and year-round disposal programs are the only safe way to dispose of medication. Medicine should never be flushed or thrown in the trash, it pollutes the environment, our waterways, or could be taken by someone for whom it wasn’t prescribed.

Kelley Groen‐Sieckmann, Community Prevention Project Coordinator with Central Vancouver Coalition and ESD 112, said that “take back events are meant to promote safe medication disposal to reduce opioid and prescription misuse and prevent medication from ending up in our landfills and waterways.”

“Statistics show that 75 percent of opioid misuse starts with people using medication that wasn’t prescribed for them – usually taken from a friend or family member,” explains Groen‐Sieckmann. “However, simple steps like properly disposing of medications at a take back event, at a year-round disposal kiosk, or mail-back program, can help prevent misuse and decrease the spread of the opioid problem we are seeing in our region and across the country,” she added.

Medicine take‐back events in Southwest Washington are funded in partnership by Washington State Health Care Authority, law enforcement, and community partners. If you’re unable to make it to a drive-thru location on October 28th, you can find a year-round medicine disposal kiosk (see links below) or order envelopes to dispose of medicine by mail at www.Med-Project.org.

Links to year-round disposal site information (by county):

- Clark Year-Round Disposal Flyer

- Klickitat Year-Round Disposal Flyer

- Skamania Year-Round Flyer

This event brings student assistant professionals, prevention intervention specialists, and coalition coordinators together with principals from the schools they serve. This event will take place on November 21, 2023, from 8am - 10am and hosted by Educational Service District 112.

Free breakfast provided!

Goals of this event:

• Promote collaboration between SAPs, principals and coalition coordinators
• Increase awareness and support for prevention efforts in the ESD 112 region
• Provide actionable steps and best practices for prevention
• Inspire hope and ideas for prevention activities within schools and communities

If you would like to attend this event or have questions please email Joy Lyons, Program Manager, Prevention Programs (joy.lyons@esd112.org) for more information.

Come Learn About Resources for Youth Prevention and Positive Engagement! The Prevention Resource Fair, hosted by Prevent Coalition, provides an in-person opportunity to connect with families, school staff, prevention advocates, and youth & family serving professionals to learn about resources for youth prevention and positive engagement.

There will be:

• FREE Narcan Training and Kits provided by SWACH
• Light refreshments
• Raffle prizes for anyone in attendance (including table hosts)
• Networking opportunities!

We encourage anyone who works with/for youth to attend this amazing event.

Event Date: Wednesday, October 18, 2023, from 3:30pm to 5pm.

Event Location: ESD 112 Conference Center, 2500 NE 65th Ave, Vancouver, WA

Would you like to host a table and promote your resources at this event?

We have about 10 open tabling spots left for anyone interested in tabling. Please contact event organizer Paula Linden for details: paula.linden@esd112.org

Event information links:

• Facebook: https://fb.me/e/1ykNcIskA
• Promotional Newsletter: https://www.smore.com/17xm4
• Event Calendar: https://www.preventcoalition.org/event/community-resource-fair/

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released its “Report to Congress on the Prevention and Reduction of Underage Drinking 2022”. According to the report:

• Alcohol is the most widely used substance among U.S. youth aged 12-20.
• Alcohol is responsible for more than 3,900 deaths annually among Americans under 21 and shortens their lives by an average of 57 years.
• Approximately 140,500 individuals of all ages in the U.S. die from alcohol-attributable causes each year, making excessive alcohol use the 3rd leading preventable cause of death in the U.S.
• The peak years of initiation of alcohol use are in grades 7-11 and 15.0 percent of high school students report using alcohol before the age of 13.
• Approximately 3.4 million youth aged 12-20 reported past-month binge drinking in 2020. Seven hundred thousand of these youth engaged in binge drinking on 5 or more days in a 30-day period.
• Past-month alcohol use is reported by 15.6 percent of males and 16.7 percent of females aged 12-20.
• 4.9% of 12–20-year-olds meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder.
• Comprehensive underage drinking prevention and reduction efforts, including evidence-based prevention, intervention, treatment, and enforcement policies implemented at multiple levels are effective in addressing underage drinking.

The report covers national data on underage drinking patterns and the federally coordinated approach on underage drinking prevention and treatment.

SAMHSA - 2022 Underage Drinking Report to Congress (stopalcoholabuse.gov)

This SAMHSA report provides Washington State statistical data and information on underage drinking. Statistics include past month alcohol use, binge drinking, average age of initiation, traffic crashes, and more. Policies, enforcement, prevention efforts, and expenditures to prevent and reduce underage drinking are discussed. The report also contains a table summarizing the many state laws related to underage alcohol purchase, possession, consumption, and furnishing by adults which coalitions may find helpful in educating their communities.

2022 Underage Drinking & Enforcement Report - Washington State (stopalcoholabuse.gov)

SAMHSA further provides a downloadable PowerPoint presentation that combines key information in the 2022 national report to congress with key data from the 2022 Washington State report (provided above). A great resource to browse all the information efficiently or to present the information to your coalition or group.

2022 Washington Underage Drinking & Enforcement Report - PowerPoint

October is National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month. To help raise awareness of the dangers of prescription (Rx) drug and over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine misuse CADCA is promoting the Dose of Prevention Challenge.

There are many ways coalitions can take part in the Dose of Prevention Challenge but all activities must take place during October 2023. Prizes will be awarded such as cash for your coalition, scholarships to attend CADCA's National Leadership Forum, recognition in CADCA's publications, and more.

Visit preventmedabuse.org for full information, requirements, and tips for completing the challenge. A registration form must be submitted with information about qualified activities - deadline is November 3, 2023!

Did you know you can report potential tobacco product violations directly to the FDA? The Tobacco Control Act and related regulations give FDA tools to help keep tobacco out of the hands of America’s youth and hold retailers and manufactures accountable. However, the public is crucial in helping FDA enforce tobacco regulations to protect America’s youth.

Potential tobacco product violations include (but are not limited to):

• Sales to underage purchasers (under 21 years old)
• Flavored cigarette sales
• Illegal marketing and advertising
• Distributing t-shirts or other promotional or novelty items with brand names of cigarette or smokeless tobacco products
• Sponsoring events using the brand name of a tobacco product
• Distribution of free samples of tobacco products
• Placement of cigarette or smokeless tobacco product vending machines in prohibited areas
• Sale of cigarettes in packages of less than 20
• Manufacture or sale of unauthorized tobacco products, e-cigarettes, or vapor products

The public can report possible tobacco product violations via an online form, telephone call, email, or post mail. The FDA compliance, enforcement, and training website has information about how to report a potential violation, what happens when you submit a potential violation, privacy and anonymity rules, and more.

Report a Violation | Food & Drug Administration (FDA)

Washington State residents can also report violations to the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) via an online form on the LCB website.

Report a Violation of a Licensed Business | Washington State LCB

Many young people who vape nicotine think it helps them relax, when in fact it can have the opposite effect. To illustrate how vaping nicotine can intensify symptoms of depression and anxiety and interfere with sleep, which is vital to mental health, Truth® is teaming up with actor and comedian Chris Parnell in its latest effort, “Toxic Therapy from Your Vape.”

See more videos and read the full story at truthinitiative.org.

Healthy Futures is an Alternative-to-Suspension program developed by the Stanford REACH Lab. This program was developed for students who have been caught using e-cigarettes or cannabis, and for any students who are interested in trying to quit.

The program contains a 40-60 minute self-paced lesson called "My Healthy Future", and a group, teacher, or counselor-led curriculum called "Our Healthy Future". All of it is part of the suite of tobacco and cannabis prevention curriculum from Stanford Medicine.

All of the resources are available free of charge. Click the image with this story to view the program website or visit med.stanford.edu.

A one-page flyer of all Stanford REACH Lab resources is available - CLICK HERE.

Everyone deserves to be safe and know how to keep the people they care about safe too.

Friends for Life is a campaign to inform and educate people about:

• what illicit fentanyl is and why it is unpredictable
• how to help teens avoid opioids like fentanyl
• how to spot and respond to an opioid overdose
• how to access and use naloxone (Narcan) in an emergency

The campaign is funded by the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA). A campaign website is available with toolkits for parents, caregivers, harm reduction partners, and prevention partners. The toolkits contain materials for class presentations, conversation guides, posters, social media graphics, and more. Visit wafriendsforlife.com to access the toolkits and resources.

SAMHSA bundled their popular youth and adult prevention materials into a Prevention Month web page. Resources include adaptable social media posts and shareables, "Talk, they hear you." campaign materials, prevention planning tools, technical assistance links, and more.

You can browse the resources at www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/prevention-month.

The Red Ribbon campaign serves as a catalyst to mobilize communities, educate youth and encourage participation in drug prevention activities. Ways to show support range from wearing red to facilitating events and activities that bring awareness to living a drug-free life.

The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) provides a toolkit to help with planning which includes promotion ideas for communities and schools, sample press release and talking points, and social media graphics. Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts who participate can earn a patch through the DEA scouting patch program.

Learn more by viewing the resources at www.dea.gov/redribbon.

Additional RRW resources available at www.redribbon.org.

CADCA in partnership with Alkermes released new, shareable resources designed to assist you in educating your communities about effective approaches to combat alcohol use disorder.

Alcohol use disorder is a chronic medical condition characterized by an individual’s inability to stop or control their drinking. Even though it is the most common substance use challenge in America less than one in ten people with alcohol use disorder receive any form of treatment. However, the good news is that no matter how severe the problem is, most people can benefit from treatment with behavioral therapies, medications, or both.

View and share the infographic with data about alcohol use disorder in the United States, pathways to recovery, FDA-approved medication options, links to resources, and effective strategies for preventing excessive alcohol use in communities.

Medications for Alcohol Use Disorder - CADCA

SAMHSA developed this parent guide to inform parents about the risks of underage drinking and empower them to share and discuss these risks with college-bound young adults.

Talking With Your College-Bound Young Adult About Alcohol: Parent Guide (store.samhsa.gov)

The CDC works to understand ACEs and prevent them. They have resources available to help educate communities and reduce the negative impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Click the link below to access facts, data, risk and protective factors, prevention strategies, and more.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) (cdc.gov)

Mental Health America (MHA) is the nation's leading national nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of mental health, well-being, and illness prevention. They provide resources for both adults and youth.

MHA provides a back-to-school toolkit called, "Selfies, Social, And Screens: Navigating Virtual Spaces for Youth" which provides information, tips, and resources for young people, caregivers, and school personnel on how to protect youth mental health in a digital world. MHA also provides shareable social media and graphics, a self-guided mental health screening tool, education on mental health conditions, and many other resources.

Visit www.mhanational.org/youth-tech for more information.

About 34 million American adults still smoke cigarettes, and smoking remains the single largest preventable cause of death and illness in the world. Smoking causes an estimated 480,000 deaths every year in the United States, or about 1 in 5 deaths.

For more than 40 years the American Cancer Society (ACS) has hosted the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday in November. Resources are available to assist people, groups, or coalitions who want to promote the event or get smoking cessation resources. Visit the ACS website at www.cancer.org or click on the image.

*Storing medicine in a locked location is the single most effective deterrent to accidental poisonings, overdose, medicine theft, and misuse that can lead to prescription drug addiction. Stay informed and talk with loved ones about the risks for ingesting or taking medicine not prescribed for them and benefits of safeguarding your medications. Learn more at www.LocksSaveLives.org.

Whether you have recently joined the Rural Network or are still thinking about it there is a resource available that will answer your commonly asked questions - our New Member Orientation Guide!

This guide describes our mission, vision, funding, 7 core principles, who we serve, and how to get involved. It also describes what our meetings are like and why you should join!

Learn all the details at smore.com/8eqhp

If you are interested in joining one or more activities below, please contact Christopher Belisle, Rural Network Coordinator (christopher.belisle@esd112.org) or preventcoalition@esd112.org. More information about these activities and the work of the Rural Network is available on the Rural Network website.

www.preventcoalition.org/rural

The full membership meets monthly on the last Tuesday from 2-3:30pm. This meeting is meant to engage network members, build connections across isolated communities, provide training to members and bring in guest speakers, we do policy work and have guest legislators come to meet rural volunteers, and we also do community-of-practice style activities where members share their experiences with one another or tackle tough issues collaboratively. These meetings are usually held virtually and open to the public, anyone is welcome to join.

This group meets monthly to prepare, design and plan for a statewide gathering of rural prevention professionals which happens every 2 years in Yakima, called the Rural Conference. We had our first ever conference last year convening our network members and the goal is to expand on that experience and make it even bigger and better than it already was. This committee gets to design theme, branding elements, activities that happen at the conference, agenda, speakers and more. This workgroup is hosted by the Rede Group, an event-planning subcontractor of Rural Network. The committee meets on a rotating schedule based on volunteer availability each month.

Logan Morrow, Community Prevention Coordinator, is running a book club around cultural competency and equity, requested by our Steering Committee. The book we’re currently reading is “I Never Thought Of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times,” by Washington author Mónica Guzmán. We are currently reading the book on our own through the next month or so then meeting in October to review and reflect. We will bring the author in to a monthly network meeting in the Winter and if there is enough interest, we can host the Book Club again in Winter or Spring after meeting the Author. A book club reflection meeting will be scheduled after members have time to read the book.

This is our newest Committee. It is tasked with reflecting and brainstorming around network member engagement. They will tackle questions such as, “Do our network members feel regularly and routinely engaged?”, “Are people feeling satisfied with our work?”, “Do people know how to get involved?”, “How can we get more members?”, “Do we have the right people at the table?”, “What barriers to engagement can we remove?”, etc. They will examine ways to improve and increase our engagement across rural communities. This committee is led by Steering Committee member Tammy Maine and will begin in October or November. The committee has not created a set schedule yet.

Our leadership team guides the work of the Rural Network, reflects on action plan progress, plans monthly meeting agenda, and evaluates the progress and outcomes of the program. We’re looking for more members to guide the work and get involved to increase our Steering capacity and keep the work sustained/strong. We meet monthly on the 1st Wednesday from 3-4:30 p.m. and are hoping to add 3-4 more members.

We have a Toolkit Workgroup meeting that is currently on pause due to funding delays and contract negotiations. This committee will eventually be run by the Montana Institute and is in charge of creating a Positive Community Norms (PCN) Campaign for rural communities statewide. Last year, this committee updated the Find Your Good campaign and created new messaging/media based on a rural youth survey they created and promoted.

Our staff holds a placeholder for an hour every month for people to come and brainstorm, bounce ideas off one another, or otherwise receive support or Technical Assistance from any/all our staff team. Sometimes you need a like-minded Coordinator to generate ideas, double check their action plan, troubleshoot a difficult sector representative, etc. We’re here to support you at these monthly time slots. Email Christopher Belisle (christopher.belisle@esd112.org) or preventcoalition@esd112.org to reserve this time with us.

Coalition Coordinators Meeting

Wednesday, October 11, 2023

9:30am-11am

Virtual conference call by invitation.

For southwest region coalition coordinators.

Prevention Resource Fair/SW Regional Network Meeting

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

3:30pm-5pm

In-person meeting.

For southwest regional network members.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

Saturday, October 28, 2023

10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

In-person events held in multiple locations.

Coalition Coordinators Meeting

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

9:30am-11am

Virtual conference call by invitation.

For southwest region coalition coordinators.

Rural Network Meeting

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

2-3:30 p.m.

Online conference call

For Rural Network members by invitation

Rural Network Office Hours

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

1-2 p.m.

Online conference call

For Rural Network members to receive technical assistance

Rural Steering Committee

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

3-4:30 p.m.

Online conference call

Develop the plan, guide the implementation, evaluate the results.

All times are Pacific Standard Time (PST)

Relevant events not sponsored by Prevent Coalition:

Washington State Prevention Summit

(In-person, The Davenport Grand, Spokane, WA)

October 24-25, 2023

Fee: $100 (youth and virtual attendee $50)

Visit preventionsummit.org or more information.

The Prevention Summit is an enriching training and networking opportunity for professionals, youth and volunteers engaged in health promotion and the prevention of substance misuse, violence, and other high-risk behaviors, in a setting that promotes cultural humility. The summit provides high-quality workshops, forums, and hands-on learning opportunities designed to meet a variety of needs, including professional development for prevention professionals. A separate youth track gives youth volunteers their own space to increase skills, share experiences, network, and gain knowledge to be effective prevention advocates.

PAVe

Clear the Vapor Conference

(Virtual)

October 24, 2023

8am-2pm PT

No fee, click here to visit registration page

Clear the Vapor is PAVe’s annual high-level and highly accessible youth vaping event. It is a unique, parent-powered and volunteer-led FREE event intended to provide both an overview and a deep dive into all aspects of this ongoing adolescent public health crisis, with an emphasis on practical solutions.

YCCTPP and Rede Group

How to Engage Schools in Community Prevention

(Webinar)

November 29, 2023

10:30am-11:30am

No fee. Registration link not yet available, expected in time for next newsletter.

This webinar presentation will be provided by Leanne Reid, former Director of Prevention for Educational Service District 112 and presenter for CADCA.

YCCTPP and Rede Group

Adolescent and Young Adult Tobacco Use

(Webinar)

December 13, 2023

11am-12:30pm

No fee. Registration link not yet available, expected in time for next newsletter.

This webinar presentation will be provided by Dr. Adam Goldstein MD, MPH, University of North Carolina Tobacco Intervention Programs.

CADCA

National Leadership Forum

Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center, National Harbor, MD

January 29 thru February 1, 2024

Cost: Visit the CADCA Forum 2024 website for more information

CADCA Forum provides training from top experts in the field, Information, tools and strategies to take your prevention work to the next level, the latest science, news and trends on substance misuse issues, the opportunity to network with thousands of advocates passionate about prevention, and specialized youth leadership training.

CannAct

Cannabis Action Conference

(Virtual)

January 30-31, 2024

Cost: $195 (adult early bird), $100 (student)

Visit www.ph-mjsummit.com or more information.

The annual CannAct Conference (formerly Public Health-Marijuana Summit) brings public health professionals, prevention specialists, equity advocates, public safety professionals, tobacco prevention professionals, partners, and other advocates together virtually to discuss the new and changing legalized cannabis landscape in our communities. The conference focus is policy, system and environmental change and youth prevention.

Pacific Southwest PTTC

Media in Prevention

(3-Part Webinar Series)

On-demand, click link below to view

No Fee

Webinar 1: Social Media Best Practices
Webinar 2: Media Literacy as a Practical and Transferrable Skill
Webinar 3: Using Media in Substance Misuse Prevention

This three-part webinar series aims to do this by helping participants better understand core concepts such as media literacy, social media strategies, and the role of advertising in substance use, and develop skills to think critically about social media, its’ messages, and its role in prevention.

NW PTTC

Ethics in Prevention Foundations

(Virtually moderated 6-hour course)

Repeats monthly, visit website for next session!

No Fee, Limited Space Available

This two-week, asynchronous moderated course, adapted from the original SAMHSA Center for Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT) course, explores the six principles of the Prevention Code of Ethics. The course also introduces a decision-making process to help practitioners apply this code to a variety of ethical dilemmas, and an online discussion area to facilitate discussion with other course participants. Course meets requirements for prevention specialist credentialing.

View ongoing training and events at https://pttcnetwork.org.

NW PTTC

Special Topics in Prevention of Substance Misuse

(Self-paced courses)

A large selection of online, on-demand courses that explore special topics in prevention of substance misuse that will better-equip prevention professionals & coalitions to serve their communities.

Access the courses via the HealtheKnowledge.org website.

NW PTTC

Pharmacology for Prevention Professionals

(Self-paced course)

Explore the basics of how substances impact major brain regions and the acute and chronic symptoms associated with different substances. Certificates of 1.5 hours for each of the following four courses: Basics of Pharmacology and Alcohol, Basics of Pharmacology and Opioids, Basics of Pharmacology and Psychostimulants (Cocaine & Methamphetamine), and Basics of Pharmacology and Cannabis.

Learn more and enroll via the HealtheKnowledge.org website.

Supported by the fiscal agent ESD 112, Prevent is a regional coalition formed in 2003 to increase collaboration, awareness, and reduce youth substance use in Southwest Washington. Prevent also implements initiatives for rural communities across Washington state. As a community mobilizer, the coalition creates a culture promoting healthy choices; advocates for policies and regulations that protect, empowers and nurtures youth; and facilitates positive opportunities for youth to be involved and thrive.

Email: preventcoalition@esd112.org
Website: www.PreventCoalition.org
Location: 2500 NE 65th Ave., Vancouver, WA, USA
Phone: 360-952-3457
Facebook: Facebook.com/PreventCoalition
Twitter: @supportyouthnow