DPR Receives First-Ever Funds to Develop a Think Tank Collaborative That Addresses
Substance Use Disorder/Opioid Use Disorder in Rural Communities
DPR is one of 120 organizations across 40 states to receive a $200,000 Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) planning grant from Health Resources and Services Administration’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (HRSA).
DPR will lead a consortium-building process to formalize partnerships with local stakeholders in Navarro County and Ennis, Texas. The project, entitled North Texas Rural Opioid Response Collaborative (NTxRORC), will develop a targeted plan of action to reduce the occurrence of opioid use disorder (OUD) among new and at-risk users and reduce fatal opioid-related overdoses. Consortium members commencing the work of the project, in addition to DPR, are Hope Clinic with locations in Ennis and Waxahachie; Casa Colina Treatment Center in Waxahachie; Love, Cassidy Foundation, in Dallas, and VOICE, Inc., in Corsicana.
In addition, NTxRORC will seek one or more representatives from each of the following community segments in Ennis and Navarro County: businesses, civic/volunteer groups, faith-based organizations, government, health-care professionals, law enforcement, media, parents, prevention/recovery community, schools, youth and youth-serving organizations.
“DPR has a long history of successfully building community coalitions to address prevention needs as they relate to the health of youth, families and entire communities,” said Becky Vance, DPR’s president and CEO. “We’ve dreamed of a centralized collection of resources for rural residents in North Texas who desperately need the answers to substance use disorder, and specifically opioid use disorder. We are thrilled and grateful to lead this collaborative effort with our incredible founding partners.”
DPR’s organizational philosophy is to address both the conditions and behaviors that place youth at-risk for drug use through a combination of individual and environmental strategies.
DPR operates six IMPACT Coalitions, groups of community volunteers who work together to provide public education, law enforcement and public policy strategies to prevent youth substance use disorder and build healthy, drug-free communities.
