University Outreach Staff Share Substance Abuse Prevention Efforts

Substance abuse experts, at the invitation of the Data Institute for Societal Challenges’ opioid research group, shared information about the Southwest Prevention Center to twenty OU faculty, staff and students on Friday, April 28 in the Thurman J. White Forum Building. The Southwest Prevention Center, a University Outreach department at the University of Oklahoma, provides prevention information, training, technical assistance and resource systems development in Oklahoma and surrounding states.

Demetrick Jones, senior community outreach prevention coordinator at the Southwest Prevention Center (SWPC) and a team member on the Collegiate Prescription Drug Grant Program, provided a snapshot of the SWPC’s regional opioid prevention programs in Cleveland and McClain counties.

“All of our projects follow a public health approach to prevention, using a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration framework,” Jones said. “With both state and federal funding, the SWPC’s regional prevention projects are involved in addressing substance use and misuse issues across the lifespan of all Oklahomans.”

The state of Oklahoma has been significantly impacted by the opioid crisis that is plaguing the United States, consistently ranking among the highest in opioid deaths. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Oklahoma had 388 opioid overdose deaths in 2017. That number climbed to 733 opioid overdose deaths in 2021, according to the Oklahoma Opioid Overdose Fatality Review Board. 

“The state has taken a number of steps to address the opioid crisis, including implementing a prescription drug monitoring program, expanding access to Naloxone and increasing funding for substance use and misuse treatment and prevention programs,” Jones said. “However, the problem continues to be a significant public health concern in Oklahoma.”

The staff at the Southwest Prevention Center are focused on five pathways for change: opioid misuse prevention, opioid addiction intervention, public health improvement, healthcare cost reduction, and individual and community support.

“The Southwest Prevention Center has also facilitated training to all local first responders,” Jones said. “Thanks to funding from the Norman Rotary Club and the Oklahoma National Guard, we also provided all local law enforcement officers with Naloxone kits to carry on duty. We continue to advocate for safe use, storage and disposal of prescription medication, even placing medication drop boxes at the Goddard Health Center and other locations in the community.”

Belinda Biscoe, Ph.D., senior associate vice president for University of Oklahoma Outreach and implementation director at the Oklahoma Parent-Child Assistance Program, provided additional information about projects of the Southwest Prevention Center.

The Prevention Technology Transfer Center, a federally-funded project through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, is one of ten regional centers in the United States that provides training and technical assistance to professionals and communities to prevent and reduce substance misuse and related behavior problems, especially focusing on the opioid epidemic.

“The Prevention Technology Transfer Center also provides substance abuse skills training and support in implementing and evaluating prevention programs and strategies,” Biscoe said. “This program is committed to advancing equity and reducing disparities in substance abuse prevention by introducing evidence-based, culturally appropriate prevention strategies.”

Other programs implemented by the Southwest Prevention Center include the Strategic Prevention and Technical Assistance Center, which focuses on underage drinking, prescription drug misuse and opioid overdose, the Opioid Response Network, which addresses the national opioid crisis with resources, support and training to health care providers and community members, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, which advances the national strategy in suicide prevention.

“The Suicide Prevention Resource Center has a variety of initiative,” Marie Cox, regional director of the Prevention Technology Transfer Center at the Southwest Prevention Center, said. “We have health care and Tribal initiatives, online clinician trainings, a lived-experience advisory committee and a public-private partnership called the Action Alliance. This is really an enormous program that provides many valuable services to the community.”

Learn more about the prevention resources offer by the Southwest Prevention Center or follow them on Twitter @ouswpc.