Prescription Drug Facts
FACT #1:
According to 2022-2023 TN Together Student Survey, 4.4% of students surveyed report misusing prescription drugs in the past month
FACT #2:
According to 2022-2023 TN Together Student Survey, 55.4% of students surveyed report prescription drugs are “very difficult” to access.
Our Impact
IMPACT #1:
CCDP will reduce the misuse of prescription drugs by youth by 3% by 2026 through peer education utilizing Youth Coalition youth members.
IMPACT #2:
CCDP will impact the percent of students who report prescription drugs are “very difficult” to access by increasing the percent through harm reduction strategies such as CLD program, participation in Drug Take Back events and drug education utilizing Youth Coalition members.
Carter County Drug Prevention & Prescription Drugs
A coalition is required to focus on the following Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Seven Strategies according to the Tennessee Department of Health and Substance Abuse Services and the National Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
The ways we focus on these strategies for reducing youth access to prescription drugs are:
- Policy, Practice, or Procedure Change
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- Promote the formation and use of a recovery court as a means of linking individuals with drug-related offenses to substance abuse treatment.
- Promote school policies that help ensure students involved with prescription drug-related offenses receive appropriate substance abuse treatment and other supportive services
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- Providing Information
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- Develop, update, and disseminate a list of substance abuse prevention, treatment, and recovery resources available in or near Carter County
- Provide Naloxone trainings and medication to CCDP partners and stakeholders
- Host activities and events for pregnant and/or parenting teens to provide prevention, suicide prevention and mental health awareness. Incorporate dangers of prescription drugs during pregnancy and breastfeeding
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- Building Skills
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- Coordinate trainings for school personnel, community members and local professionals to implement school-based prevention to youth.
- Coordinate suicide prevention, ACEs and Naloxone trainings for community partners and general public
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- Providing Support
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- Distribute Count It! Lock It Drop It! materials at community events, teaching families to count medications, lock up medication and dispose of unwanted medication to prevent the non-medical prescription drug use.
- Collaborate with regional anti-drug coalitions to develop and implement a media campaign to promote awareness of drug-take back events
- Continue youth mental health lending library at CCDP.
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- Increase Barriers/Reduce Access
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- Provide medication lock boxes to community members
- Identify hot spots for drug use among youth and use effective strategies to address them.
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- Reduce Barriers/Increase Access
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- Collaborate with pharmacies to serve as permanent drug disposal sites
- Collaborate with faith-based organizations to increase awareness of and access to services
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- Changing Incentives/Consequences
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- Use Count It! Lock It Drop It! pledge forms to recognize parents who pledge to count, safely store and dispose of prescription drugs
- Train parents using Triple P and Mom Power parenting programs to incentivize positive youth behavior and encourage youth accountability for risky behavior
- Train students in Our Whole Lives & Safe Sitter programs among others to promote positive youth behavior and encourage youth accountability for risky behavior
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- Changing the Physical Design of the Environment
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- Encourage parental monitoring of and engagement with youth to help create a home environment unsupportive of non-medical prescription drug use through implementation of the Triple P parenting, Mom Power and Our Whole Lives programs
- Provide safe spaces in Elizabethton for youth outreach and engagement
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Play2Prevent
A videogame intervention targeting opioid misuse prevention in high school students, working with the national School-Based Health Alliance (SBHA) and school-based health centers.