substance abuse disorders

The Law Enforcement/First Responder Diversion and Referral Mentoring Initiative provides communities interested in starting diversion or referral programs the opportunity to learn from established or innovative programs that have shown success in meeting the treatment needs of individuals with a substance use disorder, and in some cases an overdose. Seven sites have been chosen to act as mentors for newer programs that are trying to establish a first responder diversion program.

The Law Enforcement/First Responder Diversion and Referral Mentoring Initiative provides communities interested in starting diversion or referral programs the opportunity to learn from established or innovative programs that have shown success in meeting the treatment needs of individuals with a substance use disorder, and in some cases an overdose. Eight sites have been chosen to act as mentors for newer programs that are trying to establish a first responder diversion program.

Gandara Center in Brockton Massachusetts contacted CHJ to request information on what TTA services CHJ provides and wanted suggestions on data collection metrics.

Hancock County Ohio already has an active QRT team and is expanding to different outreach pathways to address the opioid crisis in their community. After meeting with the site's director at the COSSAP National Forum, CHJ scheduled a follow-up conference call to discuss their other needs. Hancock County's director wanted additional information on what other sites are doing with ODMAP and HIDTA.

This training was delivered at the COSSAP National Forum on March 11. The purpose of this workshop was to present the fundamentals of case management with an emphasis on creating additional support for individuals with an opioid use disorder referred from first responders. This workshop covered the critical role case management can plays in diversion by linking people from first responders to treatment and recovery by bridging the communication gap between the criminal justice and behavioral health systems.

The Council of State Governments Justice Center, with support from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, released the brief “How to Reduce Repeat Encounters: A Brief for Law Enforcement Executives,” which highlights four steps that law enforcement leaders should implement to effectively respond to individuals they repeatedly encounter.