Barnstable County Department of Human Services to Conduct New Substance Use Baseline Assessment
June 15, 2022 (Barnstable, MA) – Barnstable County Department of Human Services will undertake a new comprehensive Baseline Assessment for Substance Use on Cape Cod in connection with their MassCall3 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The assessment will build upon the original assessment completed in 2015.
As part of the assessment, Health Resources in Action (HRiA) has been retained to assist the department in all aspects of the work, which will include a literature review of academic publications, data collection, and key informant interviews. The assessment will research all areas of substance use on Cape Cod, including harm reduction, youth substance use prevention, recovery, and treatment.
Through key informant interviews, various stakeholders representing a cross-section of the Barnstable County community will be engaged to better understand gaps in service delivery, regional recommendations, and local risk and protective factors.
“This assessment is critical to advancing the important work of substance use prevention throughout Barnstable County,” said Human Services Director Joseph Pacheco, “and we’re delighted that HRiA, who assisted with the 2015 assessment, is again able to partner with us.”
The Human Services Department coordinates regional Substance Use policy through the Regional Substance Addiction Council (RSAC). The RSAC is a diverse group of stakeholders that includes town representatives, healthcare professionals, elected officials, members of the recovery community, law enforcement, treatment providers, harm reduction providers, people with lived experience, and community coalitions.
ABOUT MASSCALL3 The MASSCall3 grant combines aspects of two previous MDPH prevention-related grants; the Massachusetts Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative (MOAPC) and the Substance Abuse Prevention Collaborative (SAPC) and is federally funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This new grant builds upon the foundation established through the MOAPC and SAPC prevention contracts. Under the services described here, communities will be able to build capacity, develop a strategic plan to implement existing evidence-based strategies or design innovative approaches that adhere to SAMHSA’s Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF).
To support communities at different levels of capacity and readiness, the MASSCall3 grant created three parts with distinct yet related goals/aims. Barnstable County was granted sub-initiative B, which is intended for communities with existing capacity, infrastructure, and experience implementing a set of systematic and evidence-based prevention programs. The aim is to utilize the well-established infrastructure, systems, and partnerships to support programming with the goal of preventing misuse of substances of first use among youth.
ABOUT THE BARNSTABLE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
The mission of the Department of Human Services is to plan, develop, and implement programs that enhance the overall delivery of human services in Barnstable County and promote the health and social well-being of County residents through regional efforts that improve the coordination of services. For more information, visit us at:
https://www.bchumanservices.net/
https://www.instagram.com/bchumanservices/
https://twitter.com/HumanServicesBC
https://www.facebook.com/healthyconnectedcapecod/
ABOUT BARNSTABLE COUNTY REGIONAL GOVERNMENT OF CAPE COD Barnstable County provides exemplary government functions and services to keep our community healthy and safe, promote sustainable growth, and offers a proactive, open government that enhances the quality of life for the citizens of Barnstable County. Learn more at www.barnstablecounty.org
