Products and Resources Catalog

Providing Culturally Appropriate Healthcare for LGBTQ Persons of Color Randall Leonard, LCSW-C May 13, 2021, 1-3:15 PM EST COURSE DESCRIPTION Due to social determinants of health and economic and other structural disparities, Black and Brown's individuals utilize healthcare and social services at higher rates yet show worse overall outcomes. Likewise, LGBTQ people frequently face poorer health outcomes due to discrimination, lack of access to competent providers, and well-justified medical mistrust. Those who live at the crossroads of these identities are particularly vulnerable to needing healthcare treatment and are far less likely to access it. This seminar will explore the unique demographics of LGBTQ communities of color, the colonial legacy of gender and how it impacts Black and Indigenous residents, barriers to seeking and receiving services, and best practices for bridging gaps in access and care. Join social worker Randall Leonard to explore evidence-based techniques to reach, connect, and serve this large and diverse group of clients in various healthcare settings. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Gain awareness with the demographic, historical, and cultural context as well as strengths, challenges and needs of LGBTQ people of color in health settings Explore evidence-based best practices for engaging and supporting queer and gender- diverse ethnic minority community members “where they are.” Identify three specific tactics to create a welcoming and affirming environment for LGBTQ clients of color. PRESENTERS Maryland native Randall Leonard, LCSW-C (they/them) is a licensed clinical social worker who has specialized in the care of LGBT individuals for four years. They currently serve as a Staff Therapist at the LGBT Health Resource Center of Chase Brexton, providing individual therapy as well as assessments for gender-affirming surgery. They also facilitate “Identity Talk”, a group for trans and gender-diverse people of color to process intersectionality between culture and gender. In addition, they work as a Behavioral Specialist in the Emergency Department of Union Memorial Hospital. Before joining the Chase Brexton team, Randall served survivors of intimate partner violence at Family and Children’s Services, where they provided individual therapy and a weekly support group. They started their social work career working with people with severe and persistent mental illness at Sheppard Pratt Health Systems. Randall holds a Master of Social Work from the University of Maryland School of Social Work with a concentration in clinical behavioral health.  

Smoking and Vaping in the Americas: Policy implications for Prevention [factsheet] Learn about smoking and vaping in the Americas, policy implications for Prevention, the patterns of substance use by youth and how it affects Latino/Hispanic youth and adolescents in the US. Download the Smoking and vaping in the Americas: Policy implications for Prevention factsheet for more information and resources Fumando y vapeando en las Américas: Implicaciones Políticas para la Prevención [hoja educativa] Aprenda sobre el tabaquismo y la vapear en las Américas, las implicaciones políticas para la Prevención, los patrones de uso de sustancias por parte de los jóvenes y cómo eso afecta a los jóvenes y adolescentes latinos/hispanos en los EE. UU. Haga clic aquí para descargar la hoja educativa titulada Fumando y vapeando en las Américas: Implicaciones Políticas para la Prevención. Fumando e vaporizando nas Américas: Considerações sobre Prevenção e Políticas Públicas [ficha educativa] Aprenda sobre fumar e vaporizar nas Américas, considerações sobre prevenção e políticas públicas, padrões de uso de substâncias por jovens e como isso afeta jovens e adolescentes latinos/ hispânicos nos EUA. Clique aqui para fazer o download da ficha educativa intitulada Fumando e vaporizando nas Américas: Considerações sobre Prevenção e Políticas Públicas.

  This webinar is the fourth in a series of webinars that will highlight the overdose prevention efforts in Region 5. Today will highlight the key challenges associated with opioid misuse/OUD or unintentional fatal mixed stimulant/opioid overdoses within the Black/African American population. Presenters will provide community-informed practices for addressing opioid misuse, overdose and the prevention of OUD in Black/ African American Populations.   LEARNING OBJECTIVES   Provide recent data on prevalence of opioid overdose death rates in the Black/African American population in the U.S. Discuss contextual factors that impact the opioid epidemic and increase overdose deaths in these communities, including challenges to accessing early intervention and treatment. Understand the difference in the ways that Blacks/African Americans use opioids and other drugs compared to White and Latinx populations. Highlight new or potential innovative outreach and engagement strategies that have the potential to connect individuals with evidence-based prevention, treatment, and recovery.   Presenters today served as community experts and contributed to the development of this SAMHSA Resource: The Opioid Crisis and the Black/African American Population: An Urgent Issue was prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) by SAMHSA’s Office of Behavioral Health Equity. You can also see our research from 2017 Whitewashed   Presenters:  Kathie Kane-Willis  Director of Research and Policy for the Chicago Urban League   Kathie Kane-Willis is the Director of Research and Policy for the Chicago Urban League and she has been trending the opioid epidemic since 2003. Before joining the League, she co-founded and led the Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy at Roosevelt University from 2005-2016 and has worked to pass harm reduction policies in a number of Midwestern states.     Kareem Butler  Director of Learning and Evaluation for the Research and Policy Center, at the Chicago Urban League Kareem Butler is the Director of Learning and Evaluation for the Research and Policy Center, at the Chicago Urban League. In this role, Kareem works enterprise wide to evaluate the performance and resource needs of programmatic departments through a client focused lens to help shape and support programming that is responsive to longstanding community needs and emerging trends. With a background in public health and health policy, Kareem has developed an appreciation and respect for the gathering of input, stories and quality data, to advocate more effectively on behalf of black families and communities in pursuit of racial equity in total health and wellness.    THE OPIOID CRISIS AND THE BLACK/AFRICAN AMERICANPOPULATION: AN URGENT ISSUE (samhsa.gov)  

Este webinar oferecerá uma visão geral das políticas dos Estados Unidos da América e dos padrões de uso de substâncias pelos jovens e como elas afetam os jovens de ascendência latina/hispânica. Este treinamento também trará sugestões baseadas em evidências para professores, pais e líderes da comunidade sobre como ajudar a prevenir o início precoce dessas drogas. Additional Resources/Recursos Adicionales/Recursos Adicionais Factsheets/hojas informativas/fichas técnicas English - Download the Smoking and vaping in the Americas: Policy implications for Prevention factsheet for more information and resources Español - Haga clic aquí para descargar la hoja educativa titulada Fumando y vapeando en las Américas: Implicaciones Políticas para la Prevención. Português - Clique aqui para fazer o download da ficha educativa intitulada Fumando e vaporizando nas Américas: Considerações sobre Prevenção e Políticas Públicas   Webinar Slides English Spanish Português   Translations     Biogafia: Dra. Beatriz Carlini, PhD, MPH (Bia) é pesquisadora cientista do Instituto de Adição, Drogas e Álcool e Drogas da Universidade de Washington (ADAI) e Professora Associada Afiliada da Escola de Saúde Pública do Departamento de Serviços de Saúde. Em sua carreira de pesquisa, Dr. Carlini tem se dedicado a compreender o impacto na saúde pública de substâncias psicoativas legais, como álcool, inalantes, tabaco e, mais recentemente, cannabis. Desde 2016, Dra. Carlini lidera a Pesquisa e Educação sobre Cannabis da ADAI, incluindo a coordenação de colaboração com outros pesquisadores de cannabis na Universidade de Washington, atuando como Presidente do Programa de Simpósio de Pesquisa de Cannabis da Universidade de Washington e agindo como ponto de conexão entre legisladores no estado e pesquisadores de outras universidades . Em 2019, ela foi nomeada Diretora do Programa de Estudos sobre Tabaco na Escola de Saúde Pública da Universidade de Washington, onde também leciona Disparidades de Saúde e Justiça Social relacionadas ao Tabaco. Como uma imigrante de primeira geração e cidadã americana nascida no exterior, Dr. Carlini está especialmente interessada no impacto da cannabis e do uso do tabaco na perpetuação das disparidades sociais e de saúde. Dr. Carlini tem paixão por promover a inclusão social, desafiar estereótipos e combater o estigma. Ela aplica uma lente de equidade em seu trabalho como pesquisadora e educadora.

Preventing Underage Alcohol Use Part 2: Addressing Use Among Younger Youth Josh Esrick, MPP, and Robin LaVallee, MPP May 12, 2021, 2-3:30 PM EST COURSE DESCRIPTION This webinar will support alcohol prevention efforts for elementary- and middle school-aged youth. It will include a review of the data on younger youth alcohol use prevalence and patterns, and research on its risk and protective factors. The webinar will discuss how to improve needs assessment efforts focusing on this population, including strategies to improve primary data collection. It will also identify and highlight evidence-based prevention programs intended to serve this younger population. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Overview prevalence data on younger underage alcohol use Identify risk and protective factors most relevant to younger youth Discuss opportunities to improve needs assessment and data collection processes Explore evidence-based prevention strategies and related resources PRESENTERS Josh Esrick, MPP is a Senior Policy Analyst with Carnevale Associates. Josh has extensive experience in substance use prevention; researching, writing, and presenting on best practice and knowledge development publications, briefs, and reference guides; and developing and providing T/TA to numerous organizations. He developed numerous SAMHSA Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies’ (CAPT) products on strategies to prevent opioid misuse and overdose, risk and protective factors for substance use, youth substance use prevention strategies, youth substance use trends, emerging substance use trends, the potential regulations surrounding marijuana legalization, as well as numerous other topics. Robin A. LaVallee, MPP, is a Senior Research Associate at Carnevale Associates, LLC. She has over a decade of experience applying her expertise in policy research, evaluation, performance measurement, data collection, and analysis in the public health, substance use, and criminal justice arenas. For more than ten years, Ms. LaVallee previously conducted alcohol epidemiology and policy research supporting the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism's Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System and National Alcohol Education Program. She currently supports the Office of the Chief Financial Officer's performance management and strategic planning efforts within the Office of Justice Programs.  

The May 2021 Dialogue contains articles on: Addiction: New Buprenorphine Practice Guidelines & National Trauma Awareness Month | Mental Health: National Mental Health Awareness Month | Prevention: National Prevention Week 2021 & HIV Prevention | ORN: Fighting Stigma | Spotlight: Queer Affirming Therapy Additional sections include upcoming training and webinar events, behavioral health observances, new resources, and Region 3 news. The Dialogue is designed to inform behavioral and mental health professionals of news and upcoming events in the Central East states. This electronic newsletter is disseminated on the first Tuesday of each month. You are encouraged to provide us with any feedback or submit articles and topics for discussion in future issues of the newsletter.  Sign up to receive the Dialogue in your mailbox.       

The Double-burden: COVID-19 and Opioid Deaths De'Asia Harris, MPHc, and Leah Blackall, MPHc May 11, 2021, 12-1:30 PM EST COURSE DESCRIPTION Before the U.S. entered the COVID-19 pandemic, it has long suffered the epidemic of opioid deaths. Opioid use disorder affects 40.5 million people worldwide, and with the pandemic, we have seen these numbers rise exponentially. This webinar will address the impact of COVID-19 on individuals who misuse opioids and how the sudden change in everyday life increases their usage. It will explore how the pandemic has exacerbated mental instability and caused interruptions in potential treatment for people who misuse opioids. In addition, the webinar will present methods and resources to mitigating the risk of opioid deaths associated with vulnerable populations. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Introduce the background and history of the Opioid Epidemic, as well as the rise of opioid deaths during COVID-19 Discuss why individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) are more susceptible to COVID-19 infection Understand how a disruption in access to opioid antagonist treatment can lead to harmful effects on the individual Discover the importance of harm reduction sites, syringe service programs, interventions, and access to treatment PRESENTERS De'Asia Harris, MPHc is a graduate student at the University of Maryland, with a Public Health Practice and Policy program concentration.  She earned her Bachelor of Science in Economics from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in May of 2017.  She is also a graduate research assistant for the Consortium on Race, Gender and Ethnicity (CRGE) at the University of Maryland. She currently works as a Medical Assistant at an Outpatient Behavioral Health Clinic in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Danya Institute's Central East Region Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC). This summer, she will be partnering with the University of Miami's Minority Health Research Training (MHRT) program to research health disparities in the Dominican Republic. Upon completion of her MPH program, she plans to pursue her Ph.D. in Community Prevention. Her career goal is to pursue public health research focusing on economic stability and public health among underserved populations. Leah Blackall, MPHc is the Training and Technical Assistance intern for the Central East PTTC. Currently, an MPH candidate at the University of Maryland, focusing on Public Health Practice and Policy. Her ultimate goal is to find solutions to eliminate health disparities within the healthcare system and improve access and quality of care.    

  Preventing Adolescent Depression: Introduction to the Blues Program in the Context of COVID-19   Webinar Date: April 29, 2021   Webinar Description Adolescent depression has been of great concern to prevention practitioners especially given the challenges presented by the pandemic and the stress it has put on young people. This webinar will introduce the research base for adolescent depression prevention interventions. Dr. Paul Rohde will provide an overview of one intervention, the Blues Program, which applies a cognitive-behavioral approach to preventing adolescent depression. The webinar will also highlight how this program can be applied to individual settings.   Objectives By the end of the webinar, participants will: Gain an understanding of the research base for adolescent depression prevention interventions. Obtain a solid introduction to a cognitive-behavioral indicated prevention depression group intervention (Blues Program). Consider how they can apply this intervention or components of the program to their specific settings.   Presenter Dr. Paul Rohde is a Senior Research Scientist at Oregon Research Institute (ORI) and has over 30 years of experience as a research scientist with a focus on the etiology, treatment, and prevention of adolescent and young adult depression, eating disorders, and obesity. He has managed 8 federally funded research projects and been the Co-Investigator on an additional 20 federally funded studies. Most of these studies have been randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating prevention or treatment interventions in young people. He has published over 165 peer-reviewed articles, chapters, and books and has served on several journal and federal grant review boards. Dr. Rohde has been a licensed clinical psychologist in Oregon since 1990.         Webinar Recording View Webinar   Webinar Slides Download Slides - Preventing Adolescent Depression: Introduction to the Blues Program in the Context of COVID-19  

The purpose of this worksheet is to help entities to identify where current and proposed regulations and policies are strong and where more specific prevention-informed approaches may be needed. This worksheet can be used as a supplemental tool in conjunction with the Northwest PTTC report, Alcohol Regulatory Systems: Integrating Support for Public Health and Safety and A Prevention Practitioners' Toolkit to Understanding HHS Region 10 State Cannabis Policies and Regulations. Directions: Check the areas impacted by the law/rule and note strengths and areas for improvement. The final section provides a look at broader impact areas.   The Policy Analysis Worksheet is a part of two Toolkits: View other resources available in the Alcohol Awareness Toolkit: #ProofIsInTheNumbers. View HHS R10, Cannabis Toolkit Resources

The National American Indian and Alaska Native Prevention Technology Transfer Center would like to share with you Volume 2, Issue 2 of our newsletter, Prevention in our Native American Communities for Spring 2021: Prevention as Response to the Opioid Crisis. Please take a few moments to explore this issue. It is available at the link below to download.

COURSE DESCRIPTION How to Develop an Effective Program Logic Model Part 1   The first webinar provides an overview of logic models and describes the steps to creating one for a prevention program. Logic models provide valuable insight into a program's effectiveness and impact. In a two-part webinar series, speakers will show participants how to develop a logic model that effectively describes your program and guides its evaluation. At the completion of the webinar series, participants will have an opportunity to access individualized technical assistance from an evaluator to update their program's logic model. Select the View Resource button above to watch the recording. Below are the supplemental materials for this webinar. PowerPoint   PRESENTERS   Kyle Barrington, Ph.D., has over 30 years' experience in the field of substance misuse prevention and treatment. His experiences include being a substance abuse counselor, director of a dual-diagnosis hospital unit for adults and youth, director of an emergency shelter for runaway and homeless youth, and evaluator for local and statewide organizations. Dr. Barrington has extensive experience evaluating the impact of alcohol and drug abuse prevention programs and practices. He has five published, peer-reviewed articles, has been quoted in several scholarly articles, and has conducted over 200 program evaluations.     Nicole Schoenborn, MA, CPS, provides evaluation services for the South Southwest Prevention Technology Transfer Center funded by SAMHSA. Nicole is dedicated to building the capacity of the behavioral health workforce to reduce stigma associated with substance use and mental health issues and make data-informed decisions to improve prevention programs. Prior to joining the PTTC Network, Nicole provided training and technical assistance for SAMSHA's CAPT as a state/tribal liaison and was the Service to Science Lead for the Southwest Resource Team. For over 10 years, Nicole managed the evaluation and quality improvement services to community-based organizations, clinics, and prisons across Oklahoma working to prevent HIV and care for those living with the disease. Nicole has a master's in experimental psychology and is a Certified Prevention Specialist (CPS) through the International Credentialing and Reciprocity Consortium. 

    Two-Part Webinar Series, Implementation 101: What is the SPF Implementation Step? Part 2   Webinar Date: April 28, 2021   Webinar Description Part 2 of this series will discuss the importance of fidelity especially when making adaptations to a program. This webinar will also cover monitoring, evaluating, and adjusting program strategies and the importance of developing an implementation action plan and what to include in the plan.   Audience Community, tribal, and state-level substance misuse prevention practitioners, allied health partners and community members located in the Pacific Southwest states and jurisdictions of American Samoa, Arizona, California, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.   Presenters Kristen Gabrielsen, MPH, has worked in substance misuse prevention for nearly 30 years. She served as the Associate Director of the Western Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT), co-authored the first Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Training curriculum, and co-authored the textbook, Substance Abuse Prevention: The Intersection of Science and Practice. She currently works with states and communities across the nation to bridge the gap between research and practice by assisting prevention professionals in maximizing their effectiveness     Wa’Lynn Klein, Mt. Baker Community Coalition Coordinator has been a member of the Mount Baker community for nearly 20 years. She studies leadership at Trinity Western University and received her Certificate of Prevention Professional from the Prevention Specialist Certification Board of Washington and IC&RC in 2019. A mother of 4, she invests in healthy youth development through volunteer work in her off time. She has a love for prevention, and believes the frameworks, when trusted and followed create magic in community.          Webinar Recording View Webinar   Webinar Slides Webinar Slides   Other Resources Implementation Drivers Handout Overview of SPF Step 4: Implementation Handout National Implementation Research Network Website Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development - Registry of Experimentally Proven Programs

  The Great Lakes PTTC offers this session for behavioral health professionals and prevention practitioners in HHS Region 5: IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, and WI. This training is offered in response to a need identified by Region 5 stakeholders.   Alcohol prevention efforts often focus on reducing high-risk drinking among high-risk drinking population. For years, this was true at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. After surveying students and finding that students of color are some of the lowest-risk drinkers, University staff wanted to investigate the impact alcohol culture has on students of color. To that end, they created the Color of Drinking survey, and used it along with an analysis of social media to gain better perspective on this question. Knowing this, UW–Madison decided to investigate the impact of its alcohol culture on students of color through the Color of Drinking Survey in 2015 and 2017. Findings from both surveys will be discussed in this session. This webinar will examine the intersection of alcohol prevention and social justice and strategies implemented with UW–Madison campus partners to create a more inclusive environment and present key findings from this exploratory study.   Learning Objectives   Through this session, participants will: Gain knowledge about a mixed methods approach for evaluating the experiences of students of color; Be able to identify one strategy to engage campus partners around alcohol and social justice issues;  and Gain an understanding of how alcohol can impact climate issues.   Speaker: Reonda Washington, MPH, CHES Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Reonda Washington is a Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Her work involves helping students to make healthy choices around alcohol, researching the UW-Madison alcohol culture, collaborating with campus partners to build capacity, implementing alcohol prevention programs, and data analysis.   

The National Hispanic and Latino Addiction and Prevention Technology Transfer Centers (NHL-ATTC and PTTC) are pleased to provide new Fact sheets in honor of Cinco de Mayo.  Learn more about the holiday and how does it affect Hispanic and Latino communities in regards to alcohol use, misuse and abuse within the context of COVID.  The information is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Click here to download the files: English Spanish Portuguese

On today’s episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Kim Nelson, our SAMHSA Regional Administrator. Kim shares something that’s worth celebrating all year long! What is it you ask… we’ll you've got to listen to find out! She also highlights some of the regional data trends and gives us an insight into ground breaking prevention work going on in our region! Kim is a true prevention leader and all-around champion for the behavioral health field. Settle in for a great episode and get to know Kim Nelson.

COURSE DESCRIPTION Emerging Drug Trends in the South Southwest In this webinar, presenters Josh Esrick and Emily Patton of Carnevale using national and state data sources to describe emerging substance use trends in the South Southwest region (Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas). They also explain how the extent and impact of these trends can vary by state due to geographic, demographic, and cultural factors. They explore preventionist's role in addressing emerging substance use trends before they prove damaging. Select the View Resource button above to watch the recording. Below are the supplemental materials for this webinar. PowerPoint Emerging Drug Trends in the SSW Infographic Emerging Drug Trends in the SSW Data Sources   PRESENTERS Emily Patton, MSc., Pg.Dip., is a Research Associate with Carnevale Associates, LLC. She offers over nine years of expertise in data analysis, program management, and evaluation. Under the District of Columbia Department of Behavioral Health (DBH), she provides data analysis, programmatic support, and training and technical assistance (TTA) for multiple contracts that serve youth and families in the district. She also serves as a research associate with the Prevention Technology Transfer Center Network (PTTC) Central-East region. In this role she provides expertise in substance use prevention, mental health, and program management. Prior to joining Carnevale Associates, she worked for CSR Inc., serving as the lead analyst for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program, which is the largest source of federal justice funding in the country under the direction of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). Emily holds a Master of Science with Merit in Abnormal and Clinical Psychology from Swansea University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Edinburgh.    Josh Esrick, MPP is a Senior Policy Analyst with Carnevale Associates, LLC. Mr. Esrick has extensive experience researching, writing, evaluating, and presenting on substance use prevention and other behavioral health topics. He has developed numerous Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Prevention Technology Transfer Center and Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies’ products and trainings. Among other projects for SAMHSA, he has helped write annual Data Collection, Analysis, and Reporting reports, conduct evaluations of the Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grants, and wrote the monthly Financing Focus for the Center for Financing Reform and Innovation. Mr. Esrick has also published in the International Journal of Drug Policy on considerations surrounding marijuana legalization and in Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy on the modern usage of fear-based prevention messaging. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a Masters of Public Policy from George Washington University.

    Two-Part Webinar Series, Implementation 101: What is the SPF Implementation Step? Part 1   Webinar Date: April 27, 2021   Webinar Description and Objectives The first part in this two-part webinar series will delve into the implementation step of the Strategic Prevention Framework. We will discuss what implementation science is and why it is important. This webinar will also cover the three tasks of implementation, how to mobilize support and build capacity, and the importance of implementation drivers.   Audience Community, tribal, and state-level substance misuse prevention practitioners, allied health partners and community members located in the Pacific Southwest states and jurisdictions of American Samoa, Arizona, California, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.   Presenters Kristen Gabrielsen, MPH, has worked in substance misuse prevention for nearly 30 years. She served as the Associate Director of the Western Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT), co-authored the first Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Training curriculum, and co-authored the textbook, Substance Abuse Prevention: The Intersection of Science and Practice. She currently works with states and communities across the nation to bridge the gap between research and practice by assisting prevention professionals in maximizing their effectiveness     Wa’Lynn Klein, Mt. Baker Community Coalition Coordinator has been a member of the Mount Baker community for nearly 20 years. She studies leadership at Trinity Western University and received her Certificate of Prevention Professional from the Prevention Specialist Certification Board of Washington and IC&RC in 2019. A mother of 4, she invests in healthy youth development through volunteer work in her off time. She has a love for prevention, and believes the frameworks, when trusted and followed create magic in community.          Webinar Recording View Webinar   Webinar Slides Webinar Slides   Other Resources Implementation Drivers Handout Overview of SPF Step 4: Implementation Handout National Implementation Research Network (NIRN) and University of North Carolina's Implementation Drivers; Assessing Best Practices- Assessment Tool National Implementation Research Network Website  

Recording of Families and Relationships - Part 2 that took place on April 28th, 2021.  This month's topic is "Families and Relationships - Part 2", featuring Avis Garcia, PhD, LAT, LPC, NCC, Northern Arapaho.  How Does Addiction and Recovery Affect Family Dynamics?  Objectives: · Identify who makes up a family · Examine how addiction impacts the family o Emotionally o Socially o Physically o Spirituality · Discuss the phases of recovery · Identify goals for the identified patient and the significant others of each phase. · Identify the key characteristics of addiction · Learn about the craving response · Identify the phases of family response to addiction and recovery · List key relapse issues for people in recovery · Identify goals and strategies for each recovery phase · Discuss social or cultural issues affecting individuals, couples, and families. 

Assessing and Sharpening Advanced Skills:  A Tool for Prevention Workforce Assessment Accurate and consistent workforce capacity assessment is critical to the success of prevention systems. This toolkit measures the skills expected of advanced prevention practitioners using a behaviorally-based and fully operationalized rating scale. The toolkit can be used to identify the gaps in workforce capacity that are barriers to achieving desired prevention outcomes. It aims to empower prevention system leadership to better target training and technical assistance offerings and to fine-tune the types and amount of guidance and feedback provided to the field. Workforce Assessment Toolkit Technical Assistance Request Substance use and misuse prevention organizations located in the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas are eligible to receive intensive virtual technical assistance (TA) on how to utilize the Advanced Prevention Workforce Assessment Toolkit from a South Southwest PTTC associate. Please follow the link below to complete the TA request form. A South Southwest PTTC staff member will respond to your request within 10 business days. TA Request Form

This tool is serving prevention specialists that want to establish positive relationships with South West Asian, Northern African (SWANA) populations and those who are already working with this population and want to improve their cultural humility. The goal of this product is to help lessen the barriers that prevention specialists and SWANA populations may face when discussing substance misuse and addiction. Covered in this tool are geography of SWANA populations within new England, linguistics to consider, substances specific to this population, risk and protective factors, and New England state-specific resources for people who identify as a part of SWANA with whom prevention specialist may want to connect. This tool was written in the spring of 2021, during a time of increasing cultural awareness and humility which when incorporated into all aspects of life will benefit everyone.    This resource is specific to the New England region which includes Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Vermont. This tool speaks to some specific cultural aspects of SWANA people, often referred to as the Middle Eastern region, discussed further in the Linguistic section.

Slides from the session Families and Relationships - Part 2 that took place on April 28th, 2021.  This month's topic is "Families and Relationships - Part 2", featuring Avis Garcia, PhD, LAT, LPC, NCC, Northern Arapaho.  How Does Addiction and Recovery Affect Family Dynamics?  Objectives: · Identify who makes up a family · Examine how addiction impacts the family o Emotionally o Socially o Physically o Spirituality · Discuss the phases of recovery · Identify goals for the identified patient and the significant others of each phase. · Identify the key characteristics of addiction · Learn about the craving response · Identify the phases of family response to addiction and recovery · List key relapse issues for people in recovery · Identify goals and strategies for each recovery phase · Discuss social or cultural issues affecting individuals, couples, and families. 

Register and participate in this FREE self-paced course on Cannabis Policies: Cannabis laws and policies are rapidly changing in states. Various decriminalization, medical marijuana, and adult-use marijuana policies are being debated and moving through state legislatures and ballot boxes. Amid all of this change, where does prevention fit in? This course shows participants how these policies can evolve, the implications for public health and safety, and how and where prevention fits in. Participants will learn from a presenter with hands-on experience both in prevention and shaping marijuana policies. Additionally, participants will learn about the marijuana prevention training and technical assistance services from the New England PTTC. Learning Objectives: Participants will learn about the current state of marijuana policies across the six New England States Participants will learn about the importance of public policy that is data driven and informed by public health and prevention science. Participants will learn about the importance of training community sectors in marijuana science and how it can be a powerful environmental strategy for prevention. Note: This New England PTTC self-paced course is hosted on the PTTC Network online learning platform Healtheknowledge.org. You will need to create a free Healtheknowledge.org account to register and participate in the course. After you have created your free account you will be able to register and participate in this free, self-paced course. You will then also be set up to access in participate in all future New England PTTC self-paced courses and webinars.

Preventing Underage Alcohol Use Part 1: An Overview of Data and Strategies Josh Esrick, MPP, and Robin LaVallee, MPP April 28, 2021, 1-2:30 PM EST COURSE DESCRIPTION This webinar will provide a broad overview of the current state of underage drinking and related prevention efforts. It will include a review of the data on the prevalence of alcohol use and alcohol use patterns, along with data on the adverse effects of underage alcohol use and research on its risk and protective factors. The webinar will also discuss what is known about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on underage alcohol use. Finally, it will provide an overview of Federal underage drinking prevention efforts and the types of evidence-based strategies that prevention professionals can implement. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Summarize the data on the state of underage drinking and its consequences Explain the research on risk and protective factors for engaging in underage drinking Explore what is known and unknown about the impact of COVID-19 Overview Federal prevention efforts Highlight evidence-based prevention strategies and related resources PRESENTERS Josh Esrick, MPP is a Senior Policy Analyst with Carnevale Associates. Josh has extensive experience in substance use prevention; researching, writing, and presenting on best practice and knowledge development publications, briefs, and reference guides; and developing and providing T/TA to numerous organizations. He developed numerous SAMHSA Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies’ (CAPT) products on strategies to prevent opioid misuse and overdose, risk and protective factors for substance use, youth substance use prevention strategies, youth substance use trends, emerging substance use trends, the potential regulations surrounding marijuana legalization, as well as numerous other topics. Robin A. LaVallee, MPP, is a Senior Research Associate at Carnevale Associates, LLC. She has over a decade of experience applying her expertise in policy research, evaluation, performance measurement, data collection, and analysis in the public health, substance use, and criminal justice arenas. For more than ten years, Ms. LaVallee previously conducted alcohol epidemiology and policy research supporting the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism's Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System and National Alcohol Education Program. She currently supports the Office of the Chief Financial Officer's performance management and strategic planning efforts within the Office of Justice Programs.    

In this tool, you can see how you can use each step to inform your practices. Feel free to use this map with stakeholders, a coalition, or community members to explain the process and how you'll use this tool. At the end of this guide, there is a survey that you can use with your organization, coalition, or group to assess your strengths and areas of growth. The New England PTTC will create a report from your organization-specific data which you can share with your team to assess what areas you may want to focus your work around diversity and inclusion. You may return to this tool when you have determined which areas you want to work on for thoughts on what you might do to improve.   Prevention specialists make a commitment to serving the community. To serve a community fully and equitably, the prevention specialist must recognize that not all parts of the community receive prevention messaging and programing the same way. In order to reach all the diverse parts of your population, you must make intentional efforts to identify, understand, and speak to the full variety of people you serve.