PADUCAH, KY – The Purchase District Health Department has been awarded a $900,000 grant, over three years from the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant and Substance Abuse Program which was developed as part of broader federal legislation focusing on addiction to help provide financial assistance to treat and support those impacted by illicit opioids.
The grant will be used to support efforts in eight counties in the Purchase Region by providing Naloxone for law enforcement and first responders, and help fund the diversion program Badges of Hope. The grant also will fund recovery support services, including recovery housing and peer support services, and will be facilitated by Four Rivers Behavioral Health’s Community Recovery Center, Turning Point.
Recovery support services include limited-time houses assistance, job seeking help and more for people new to Recovery. Many people who have recently entered recovery may have been incarcerated, in treatment or lost everything due to their addiction. The assistance Turning Point can provide will help people get a leg up.
Turning Point director Shamike Stiles said, “Stable housing is a basic need and a social issue; the solution to achieving stable housing should be a community effort. Individuals leaving treatment often turn to old habits when transitioning back into the community to avoid homelessness which puts a strain on their recovery efforts. This grant will allow us to plant a seed of hope and give people in recovery a fighting chance of securing independent housing and begin living a self-directed life.”
Don Goodman is a Peer Support Specialist for Turning Point and himself is in recovery.
He said, “Housing for those new to recovery will be an asset to the community because most individuals in recovery have lost everything and have to start from scratch after they complete a 6 to 18 month treatment program.”
They may not have a car, furniture, a place to live or a job, but are trying to reestablish themselves into society.”
Kaitlyn Krolikowski, health educator for the Purchase District Health Department said, “Addressing the barriers that our population faces often requires innovation and collaborative relationships. We are excited to continue partnering with Four Rivers Behavioral Health to meet the needs not only in our district but the Purchase Area as a whole.”
The grant was awarded based, in part, on the unique partnership between law enforcement, first responders, behavioral health organizations, and public health agencies who are active members of the Purchase Area Health Connections Opioid Task Force.
-30-
The Purchase District Health Department provides environmental, preventive, curative, and health maintenance services for eight counties in western Kentucky. The department provides direct health care, health education and counseling, and enforcement of laws that protect health and the environment through quality, cost effective care.
Four Rivers Behavioral Health is a private, not-for-profit community mental health agency that for more than 50 years has provided comprehensive mental health, substance abuse and developmental/intellectual disability services to clients in Ballard, Calloway, Carlisle, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Livingston, McCracken, and Marshall Counties.
