Welcome
to 2009 - New
Year, New Look!
Our
first e-newsletter was sent out in January of '08 and we're excited to still be
sharing information with you a full year later. We've seen some exciting
changes within our project and we look forward to keeping you in the loop with
any other updates and if you're new to us (or just want a refresher of the last
year), do check out our archive page on the City of Portland's Substance Abuse
Prevention website.
Happy 2009!
Amanda, Nancy & Ronni
Portland's Overdose Prevention Project
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Alex's Story: A
Look into Life on Methadone This is Alex's story of living life in recovery with methadone. Alex generously shared his story to reveal how (despite wide-ranging public opinion) methadone
treatment can positively impact people's lives.
"I started treatment in August 2007 where i was such a mess.
I wasn't working, spending time with family or anything constructive for that
matter. I was using daily 5-6 times everyday, walking around in another world.
I was putting a strain on my girlfriend and our relationship along with my
parents and brother too. My girl told me that she couldn't live like this
anymore, all the lying, and stuff that goes on in the life of an addict..." Keep Reading
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Blog Heaven: Navigating the Blogosphere "When
I first contemplated entering the blogosphere I was worried about 'information
overload' but now that I have my fancy (Real Simple Syndication) RSS reader, I get
categorized updates whenever I want - and the best part is that it doesn't flood
my email inbox! I have been searching around and have listed a bunch of great
blogs - as well as some free RSS reader links - for you. Happy blogging!"~Amanda
*You do NOT need a subscription to view these blogs.
Subscribe to any of
these free RSS readers to get your customized updates: Bloglines, GoogleReader, NewsGator, Technorati, or Pageflakes. When browsing websites look for icons - aka "chicklets" - like these to subscribe to your favorite feeds with just a click!
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OPP Member Highlights CAP Quality Care CAP Quality Care is now "part of the 4th cohort group for COSII, The Co-Occurring State
Integration Initiative. At the end of CAP's 18 months with this grant, there will
have been a total of 30 pilot sites in Maine. The Co-occurring State
Infrastructure Grant is a federal project funded by SAMHSA through the Maine
Office of Substance Abuse. Its goal is to help the state to develop
infrastructure that will make it possible for providers to offer integrated,
co-occurring treatment services. The
new substance abuse regulations, which came out the beginning of March 2008,
were written in co-occurring language. Co-occurring treatment is our future and
CAP is trying to be proactive by being involved with the grant." FMI about COSII, email Susan @ CAP in Westbrook. Minority Health ProgramPortland's Overdose Prevention Project will begin the new year with a renewed partnership with the City of Portland's Minority Health Program. In the near future you will be able to find resources for minority populations on both our OPP site as well as the MHP's website. We will provide information regarding statistics, research, resources, local contacts and more as we learn the needs of the specific communities. If you would like any more information regarding our partnership, please email Ronni.Advocacy Partnership ExchangeOn February 5, 2009 the OPP's Advocacy Partnership Exchange (APEx) will be holding its second panel discussion at the Preble Street Resource Center's day shelter. Our May 2008 Q & A session ("Addressing Addiction & Talking Recovery") was lead by staff from Crossroads for Women, City of Portland and PROP/The Women's Project who spoke about their services while interacting with an audience of 30 or so folks at PSRC. This year, based on feedback from our outreach work, staff from Merrimack River Medical Services, Discovery House and CAP Quality have graciously committed to facilitate a discussion "Dispelling the Myths of Methadone & Medication Assisted Treatment" in the hopes of reducing stigma and bringing the truths about methadone to light. View (and please feel free to distribute) the flyer or contact Amanda FMI. |
News You Can Use: Headlines from Portland & Beyond
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Next Meeting: MARCH 4, 2009 2:00-3:30 Joining us at our next meeting is Dr. Marcella Sorg, Research Associate from the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center and the Rural Drug & Alcohol Research Program. Dr. Sorg will elaborate on Maine drug-death trends and answer questions we have regarding her research. We have invited additional key community members and look forward to a great discussion. Portland City Hall, Rm 209 RSVP Ronni
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National Geographic: Explorer Series Heroin Crisis
"Stronger,
purer and easier than ever to get, heroin is attracting millions of new mainstream
users, and a new source -- Afghanistan -- is flooding the global
market with heroin in greater than ever quantities." Heroin Addicts Speak About Addiction
The
World's Most Dangerous Drug
"Methamphetamine is one of the hardest drugs to quit. Its abuse is
ravaging rural communities and cities alike...[go] inside this global epidemic
to find out what makes meth so addictive and destructive." Lisa Ling's In-Depth Report
Marijuana Nation
"Reporting from secret farms and not-so-secret grow houses of marijuana cultivators...where marijuana is not just a drug but a way of life." Video from NGC |
Our Partners: CAP Quality Care, Maine Office of Substance Abuse, Preble Street Resource Center, Discovery House, Portland Fire Department, Merrimack River Medical Services, Maine Alliance for Addiction Recovery, Maine General Medical Center and Portland Public Health Division's Behavioral Health Team, India Street Clinic and Minority Health Program.
FMI About Our Programs Visit: Our Website Our Blog
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