{"id":189438,"date":"2022-08-25T10:30:01","date_gmt":"2022-08-25T14:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=189438"},"modified":"2022-08-24T16:58:22","modified_gmt":"2022-08-24T20:58:22","slug":"tackling-the-opioid-crisis-in-collaboration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2022\/08\/tackling-the-opioid-crisis-in-collaboration\/","title":{"rendered":"Tackling the Opioid Crisis in Collaboration"},"content":{"rendered":"

UConn Health is part of a federally funded effort to address the opioid crisis in partnership with the Connecticut nonprofit Community Mental Health Affiliates, Inc.<\/p>\n

Backed by a five-year, $2.6 million grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, CMHA has launched the IMPACT program. IMPACT stands for I<\/strong>ntensive M<\/strong>edicated assist treatment P<\/strong>erson A<\/strong>pproach to C<\/strong>ommunity T<\/strong>reatment. It places CMHA staff within local shelters to bring services directly to those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.<\/p>\n

\u201cCMHA designed this program in-house,\u201d says CMHA Chief Program Officer Grace Cavallo. \u201cWe have an ongoing opioid epidemic, and we created this program to give us the flexibility we need to reach and engage people who wouldn\u2019t otherwise seek out services.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Understanding that basic needs must be met before recovery can be considered, this approach addresses treatment access barriers such as housing, and transportation issues, by bringing treatment to them.
\n — Janice Vendetti<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

IMPACT is one of several grants recognized by UConn\u2019s Office of the Provost and Office of the Vice President for Research for its innovative design to address a significant societal problem. CMHA works closely with the UConn School of Medicine, with Karen Steinberg<\/a>, associate professor of psychiatry, and Janice Vendetti, a health services researcher in the Department of Public Health Sciences<\/a>, serving as evaluators on the grant to assist with data collection and reporting.<\/p>\n

\"Janice
Janice Vendetti is a health services researcher in UConn Health’s Department of Public Health Sciences. (File photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIndividuals experiencing homelessness experience high rates of substance misuse and opioid overdose, and substance use disorders can prolong homelessness and complicate treatment,\u201d Vendetti says. \u201cIMPACT\u2019s novel approach utilizes extensive outreach in the community, via peer support and intensive case management services and engages clients literally \u2018where they are\u2019 by providing on-site medication-assisted therapy and behavioral health services at the shelters. Understanding that basic needs must be met before recovery can be considered, this approach addresses treatment access barriers such as housing, and transportation issues, by bringing treatment to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond providing training and analytic support for data collection and reporting, Vendetti works with CMHA staff to conduct and guide the process and outcome evaluation, measure effectiveness, and suggest adjustments when needed.<\/p>\n

\"Karen
Karen Steinberg is a clinical psychologist and associate professor of psychiatry at the UConn School of Medicine. (Photo by Tina Encarnacion)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe are looking at supporting individuals with opioid use disorders in linking them to resources, housing, and preventing overdose deaths,\u201d Steinberg says. \u201cThis project has some important innovations in that it is focused on a critical and debilitating societal problem of opioid use disorders and attempts to provide tailored, compassionate services that approach the issue from a holistic perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n

Initially, CMHA\u2019s IMPACT team was embedded in three local shelters: the Friendship Service Center and Salvation Army in New Britain and the St. Vincent DePaul Mission Shelter in Bristol. Since then the program has expanded to include the Agape House in Bristol. The IMPACT team provides substance misuse and mental health training and distributes lifesaving naloxone, commonly known by the brand name Narcan, to all participating shelter staff and volunteers.<\/p>\n

Since CMHA\u2019s expansion into additional shelters, over 80% of engaged program clients have enrolled in MAT (medication assisted treatment) for opioid use. This opens the door for individuals to receive additional peer and recovery support services, and enables IMPACT team members to connect them with primary health care, sober housing, and other resources to help ensure success in long term recovery.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe homeless population tends to be unseen, or seen as less, and we\u2019re very excited for the recognition this program is receiving,\u201d said IMPACT Program Coordinator Marisa Giaccotto. \u201cThere is a fear of being judged, a hesitation of receiving services within the community. Our ability to meet individuals in their space, like a shelter, builds that trust and increases their chances of receiving the life-saving treatment and care they need and deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

For 47 years, <\/em>Community Mental Health Affiliates, Inc. (CMHA)<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, a private, nonprofit behavioral health treatment provider, has been caring for individuals and families living with mental illness, struggling with addiction, and adjusting to challenging life circumstances. Headquartered in downtown New Britain, with offices throughout the city and in Waterbury, CMHA\u2019s nearly 350 employees provide therapy, connection, and compassion to more than 7,000 individuals each year. CMHA is Connecticut\u2019s first fully Joint Commission-accredited behavioral health home and is a SAMHSA-certified community behavioral health clinic (CCBHC).<\/em><\/p>\n

The <\/em>Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)<\/em><\/strong><\/a> is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) that leads public health efforts to advance the behavioral health of the nation. SAMHSA’s mission is to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America’s communities.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UConn Health is working with Community Mental Health Affiliates to carry out a recently launched intervention program that focuses on vulnerable populations by removing barriers to treatment and resources.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":111,"featured_media":139950,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1715,2231,2291,1868,179],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2010],"class_list":["post-189438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-impact","category-health-well-being","category-psychiatry","category-meds","category-uconn-health"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-19 19:40:02","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189438","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/111"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189438"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189438\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":189455,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189438\/revisions\/189455"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/139950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189438"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=189438"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=189438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}