V.I.P. Nomination Form

Nomination Process

Opiate/Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force 2013 Annual Report

ROSC TRAINING – SEPTEMBER 26, 2013

Please click HERE to register for our upcoming ROSC (Recovery Systems of Care) Training Summit.

To hear a recent interview about the Summit and additional information about ROSC click HERE.

Talking to Your Kids About a Disaster or Traumatic Event

2012 Monitoring the Future Survey Released

1 in 4 High School Seniors Report Past-Month Usage of Marijuana Illicit Drug Use Among Teens Holds Steady, Shows Modest Declines Flanked by senior leadership from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Office of National Drug Control Policy(ONDCP) and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), researchers from the University of Michigan today unveiled results of the 2012 Monitoring the Future survey. The overall story this year is that the use of most illicit drugs among the nation’s teenagers is either holding steady from last year or showing some modest declines. In particular, marijuana use has stopped trending upward and synthetic marijuana did not show a rise this year, although the survey’s principal investigators say it remains at high levels and is not declining despite DEA attempts to schedule many of the most common ingredients of synthetic marijuana. Another exception to this generally positive story is the appearance of a turnaround in alcohol use
among the older teens. The survey of approximately 45,000 eighth, 10th and 12th graders also found fewer
students perceive marijuana as harmful, compared with previous years. Researchers found 41.7 percent of eighth graders view occasional use of marijuana as dangerous, and 66.9 percent view regular use as harmful. These rates are the lowest since the survey began asking this age group about their perceptions of marijuana in 1991. Among 12th graders, 20.6 percent view occasional marijuana use as risky, the lowest rate since 1983. Among
this age group, 44.1 percent view regular use as harmful, the lowest rate since 1979. Almost one-quarter of the nation’s high school seniors say they have smoked marijuana in the past month, and just over 36 percent admit to using the drug in the past year. Meanwhile, 6.5 percent of high school seniors smoked marijuana daily. Among 10th graders, 3.5 percent say they use marijuana daily, while 17 percent report using the drug in the past month, and 28 percent in the past year. “We are increasingly concerned that regular or daily use of marijuana is robbing too many young people of their potential to achieve and excel in school or other aspects of life,” NIDA Director Dr. Nora D. Volkow said in a news release.

For more on this topic, view a brief video summary and read a statement from Partnership at Drugfree.org President and CEO Steve Pasierb. To see how Ohio’s youth compare, see the latest Youth Risk Behavior Survey results from the Ohio Department of Health.

John Richey Named 2013 Prevention Innovator of the Year

(COLUMBUS, OH – Dec. 6, 2012) The Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) presented its annual “Community Prevention Awards” this week during the 24th Ohio Prevention and Education Conference (OPEC), the largest alcohol and other drug prevention workforce development event of its kind in the state. The awards are given annually to service providers and/or individuals who exemplify Ohio’s best in terms of prevention programming, advocacy and leadership.

“Promoting healthy, safe and productive communities is a top priority for the Kasich Administration,” commented ODADAS Director Orman Hall. “This year’s recipients have distinguished themselves as true pioneers in our field, employing creativity and innovation to advance prevention science for the betterment of Ohio citizens.”

John Richey, MBA, RHIA, The University of Findlay (Hancock County) – John Richey, director of the Health Informatics Program at The University of Findlay, was nominated by the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services and Community Partnership for his efforts to lead the local Opiate/Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force in developing a database to gather and manipulate information related to substance abuse trends that could be used to make data-informed decisions around local prevention and education efforts.    

ADAMHS Board Presents Annual Awards

October 24, 2012

The Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services presented its AnnualVIPawards at their Board meeting on October 23, 2012.  Receiving awards were Tony Grotrian, NAMI of Hancock County and Donna Ridenour.

The Board presented Tony Grotrian with the Volunteer of the Year Award.  Mr. Grotrian has spent the last three years working to increase the awareness of opiate addiction in Hancock County.  He serves on many of the committees of the Hancock County Opiate/Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force, is a member of the Strategic Prevention Framework Team and a member of the Reentry Task Force.  He has also started a Facebook page called Operation SOK (Save Our Kids).  As a tribute to his grandson, Tony has written a book to explain his experience in the loss of his grandson to a heroin overdose.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Hancock County (NAMI of Hancock County) received the Impact Award.  NAMI of Hancock County is an organization that offers monthly support meetings and educational programs for consumers who suffer with mental illness and their family and friends.  This group is also responsible for it community awareness programs and education to the community.  At its annual Walk in May of this year the group was successful in raising $30,000 to further its outreach in the Community.

The Professional of the Year award was given to Donna Ridenour.  Donna is a Physician Recruiter with Blanchard Valley Health System.   Through its partnership with the hospital, the ADAMHS Board was able to use Ms. Ridenour’s professional expertise to recruit and negotiate contracts for two psychiatrists now practicing in our community: Dr. Dinh at Century Health and Dr. Hash at Family Resource Center.  This Community will benefit greatly from her efforts as more individuals receive services from a psychiatrist than any other service funded by the ADAMHS Board.

The ADAMHS Board AnnualVIPAwards are sponsored by Mark K, Inc.

Finding source of prescription drugs stressed

Aug 07, 2012

By RYAN DUNN, staff writer, The Courier

A drug abuse task force on Monday discussed how better to pinpoint the source of abused narcotics, in an effort to curb addiction.  Members of the prescription drug abuse prevention task force, part of the Hancock County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services board, spoke of the importance of addressing the problem at the local level. A recent Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America national conference that task force members attended in Nashville highlighted the benefits of considering the problem’s root cause, said Executive Director Precia Stuby.  “How do we get down a little deeper so we can make the kind of changes that need to be made in the community?” she said.  Law enforcement, for example, tracks details about drug sales or drug possession arrests. Stuby said she hopes to meet with officials to determine how thoroughly that information is detailed. 
If opiate and prescription drug arrests are prevalent in specific neighborhoods, that information could be used in fighting the problem, she said. 

In an effort to better alleviate pain, controlled substances have become more available over the years, said John Stanovich, assistant dean of pharmacy at the University of Findlay.  Individuals seeking the drugs can more easily do so now through illegal pain clinics, he said. Stanovich contrasted those using narcotics to fight acute pain versus chronic pain. Those with brief acute pain generally do not take the majority of their medication, he said.
“The people who have chronic pain eventually do develop an addiction, there’s no doubt about it, to narcotics and to opiates,” he said.  Some prescription pills, such as Vicodin, have grown significantly more popular, Stanovich said. 

Separately, Randy Greeno, a member of the board’s medication collection committee, encouraged residents to properly dispose of expired and unwanted pills. Two permanent drug collection bins are located in the Findlay Police Department and Hancock County Sheriff’s Office. Over the next few months, billboards will be placed in different locations touting these locations, Greeno said. The agency also conducts scheduled events to take back medications. The next collection is Oct. 20. 

Members also announced an upcoming public forum, where they will discuss grants and progress made against drug abuse. The forum is scheduled at 4 p.m. Aug. 15 in the Davis Building at the University of Findlay, Room 102. 

Dunn: 419-427-8417