The Spokane Regional Health District has p rovided Opioid Treatment Services for over 30 years\, and has since grown into one of the largest providers of care to people working through opioid addictions in the area. This program uses medication-assisted therapy to help people decrease cravings and withdrawal related to opioid use.
\n< p>SRHD is currently conducting a feasibility study to answer the question &ldquo\;Would the community be better served if the Opioid Treatment Progr am at SRHD was run as an independent organization instead of run by public health.&rdquo\;\nAt their core\, Local Health Jurisdictions (LHJ) like the Health District are responsible for a specific set of &ldquo\;Cor e Foundational Public Health Services&rdquo\; outlined by the Department o f Health\, which dictate the specific minimum set of programs a LHJ is sup posed to work on. Offering direct Treatment Services programs is not actua lly part of these services. Treatment Services is funded primarily through fee for services. In rare years like 2013 and 2023\, Treatment Services n eeded to dip into the general fund to cover expenses. Currently\, SRHD has approximately 1\,000 actively enrolled clients\, and has a staff of 60. I n the last 30 years\, the number of providers and treatment options in our community has grown\, and it feels important to take time to ask the comm unity for feedback on this piece of SRHD's role in responding to the opioi d crisis. \;
\nSRHD Administrator Dr. Alicia M. Thompson will be responsible for delivering a recommendation to the Board of Health on whe ther to separate. If the recommendation is to separate\, Dr. Thompson&rsqu o\;s priorities are 1) to make sure no one currently in the program loses their services\, and 2) to maintain or increase the quality of service del ivered. Dr. Thompson has been very clear that she would not put forth a re commendation to separate that included any gap or loss in care for the cur rent clients. It is the Board of Health who will make the ultimate decisio n. A series of listening sessions is being facilitated by hadley morrow\, who will make sure your feedback is recorded and delivered to SRHD leaders hip. Your attendance is critical to making sure Dr. Thompson's recommendat ion to the Board of Health is well supported by community feedback.
\n< p>This listening session is being facilitated by hadley morrow (any pronou ns)\, in partnership with Experience Matters and Range Media\, and with th e direct support of SRHD leadership to ensure that authentic community voi ce is included in the recommendation process. This listening session will include a brief presentation on the background of the Opioid Treatment Pro gram at Spokane Regional Health District and then create space for communi ty feedback and questions. There will be options to give spoken or written feedback\, and SHRD leadership will be in the room to answer questions. T he event will also be livestreamed on the Spokane Public Library YouTube p age for you to watch at home\, with a survey made available to give your w ritten input from afar. If you have questions about this process\, contact hadley morrow at hello@hadley.co nsulting.\nBy attending library programs\, you are agreeing to potentially appear in photos/videos taken at our locations that may be use d in promotional materials including social media.
\nWe strive to ma ke events welcoming for people of all abilities. To request accommodations (i.e. hearing assistance\, ASL requests\, or other ADA inquiries)\, email sday@spokanelibrary.org.
\nFor all event information inquiries\, em ail telref@spokanelibrary.org or call 509-444-5300.
\nhttps://spokaneli brary.libnet.info/event/11186640 URL;VALUE=URI:https://spokanelibrary.libnet.info/event/11186640 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR