Explanation
The City of Columbus Department of Public Safety received a $1.2 million Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Site-based Program (COSSAP) grant award from the United States Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance. Grant award period: October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2023.
COSSAP funding supports continued outreach services provided through the City’s Rapid Response Emergency Addiction Crisis Team (RREACT). RREACT is an innovative outreach service operated by the Division of Fire to actively address the opioid crisis negatively impacting far too many Columbus residents.
RREACT outreach includes firefighters/paramedics, Crisis Intervention Team certified peace officers, a substance use case manager, a registered SUD nurse, a family case manager, and trauma specialist. RREACT proactively connects and builds relationships with opioid users to 1) forge treatment and recovery pathways for users, and 2) provide multi-sector social service navigation and trauma counseling for children and other caregivers in the home. This multi-disciplinary outreach team goes directly into communities to connect with individuals who survive overdose (after Narcan© administration) but then refuse EMS transport to the emergency room. At these follow up meetings, team members assess immediate health needs, provide resource referrals, and create opportunities for users and family/household members to link with harm reduction supplies, treatment programs, trauma services, and social benefit supports.
Grant funds support one family case manager, one trauma specialist, a project manager and overtime costs for firefighters/paramedics and peace officers to fill in when sworn RREACT staff are on vacation, sick and/or attending mandatory training. Grant funds also support continued project evaluation and technical support for the program’s cloud-based Client Management System (CMS).
In order to achieve project deliverable...
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