2. Contractor Progress & Outcomes

Anti-Stigma & Education Campaign | Effct LLC

Deliverable Status

• Effct’s Work Plan, with notes, status updates, and links to relevant documents can be found in this Google Sheets document: R5COAC Work Plan/Contractor Scope Tracking

• All deliverables are currently on schedule.

Data Gathered/Reach

• During this reporting period Effct conducted key informant interviews and focus groups in all five counties. A full breakdown of the focus groups by county can be found in this document: Focus Group Final Report for Region 5

  • Overall, Effct conducted 20 community engagement sessions with 51 individuals, 16 of which were native Spanish speakers.

    • Individuals engaged included regional government employees, recovery specialists, community members with substance use disorder lived experience, justice-involved youth, and nonprofit organization staff.

• Key findings from across the region, as reported by focus group participants:

  • Risk factors

    • Mental health challenges

    • Opioid prescriptions

    • Boredom and lack of parental supervision among youth

    • Easy access to substances from Denver and Summit

  • Desire for resources

    • Medical Treatment

    • Mental Health Therapy and Treatment

    • Addiction Recovery Programs

    • Youth Education and Extracurricular Activities

• During this reporting period Effct also developed and launched a regional Baseline Assessment survey. This survey was distributed via social media in all five counties and aimed to measure regional attitudes regarding substance use disorder and stigma related to seeking/initiating treatment. A full report of these baseline results can be found in this folder: Baseline Assessment Results

  • The survey received 109 responses; 8 of those responses recorded in the Spanish-language version.

  • Key findings from the survey:

    • Please rate your agreement with the following sentence: “substance abuse and addiction are a result of an individual’s own actions.”

      • English survey version respondents:

        • 46% responded Strongly Disagree or Somewhat Disagree

        • 39% responded Strongly Agree or Somewhat Agree

      • Spanish survey version respondents:

        • 50% responded Strongly Agree or Somewhat Agree

        • 25% responded Somewhat Disagree or Strongly Agree

  • What, if anything, do you believe would prevent you or people you know from seeking treatment for substance use or addiction? Check all that apply.

    • English survey version respondents:

      • 75% of respondents selected “I’m worried I won’t be able to afford treatment.”

      • 68% of respondents selected “My insurance will not cover treatment.”

      • 50% of respondents selected “I’m too far away from treatment options or providers.”

      • 45% of respondents selected “I’m worried I’ll lose my job.”

    • Spanish version survey respondents:

      • 50% of respondents selected “I’m afraid that my family, friends, and peers will judge me.”

      • 38% of respondents selected “I worried I’ll lose my job.”

      • 38% of respondents selected “I’m worried I won’t be able to afford treatment.”

Accomplishments

• In the March 2023 Anti-Stigma/Education Campaign Workgroup meeting Effct presented potential brand materials for the community platform that will host the Anti-Stigma/Education materials. Workgroup members provided input within the meeting and via a survey. With the consensus of Workgroup members a brand for the platform was finalized. You can view the final branding guide here: Community Compass - Brand Guide.pdf

  • Effct proposed brand materials based on the geographic landscape of Region 5 and qualitative outcomes of the focus groups.

    • The name of the campaign is “Community Compass”

      • The logo emulates a compass while also touching on the importance of community members convening in mutual support, a theme that emerged across community engagement sessions.

    • The color palette is inspired by the mountain/mesa landscapes present across the region.

    • The voice the campaign will employee is a “wise but non-judgemental guide to recovery and substance abuse”

• Using the brand guideline and input from Workgroup members Effct has also developed a website and initial digital and print materials to launch Community Compass as a resource in the community.

  • The website is currently live: https://www.communitycompass.co/

    • Workgroup members are continuing to refine the website content to ensure that resources and education content is accurate and relevant to communities across the region.

  • Once a backlog of social media posts has been established, Workgroup members will identify regional stakeholders to cross-promote the platform.

  • Effct will continue to engage with community members to gather stories aboutsubstance use recovery.

Challenges/Barriers/Changes

• When establishing resources to feature on the Community Compass website, many Workgroup members reflected on the difficulty of representing service providers in a way that is both geographically accurate and relevant to residents of Region 5. Particularly, the Roaring Fork Valley which contains 3 counties (Eagle, Garfield, and Pitkin) poses a need to creatively organize resources in a way that encourages understanding and utilization.

  • Currently resources are organized on Community Compass according to county. Effct is currently working on formatting options that would provide nuance while maintaining ease of use for residents that are seeking information.

  • Adjustments to the resource organization on the Community Compass website will be shared in future progress reports.

• Throughout this quarter’s Workgroup meetings a need for creating a collaborative and participatory process for approving the multiple forms of materials emerged.

  • Karina Schorr and Effct, in seeking both collective input and efficiency, developed a process where all Workgroup members receive materials 1-2 weeks prior to the meeting and provide input.

    • This allows Workgroup members adequate time to digest proposed materials and submit feedback regarding accuracy, relevance, and community needs.

    • After feedback is submitted Effct incorporates the input and in the monthly Workgroup meeting is able to present materials that have already undergone one round of refinement.

    • This process was well-received by Workgroup members and will be utilized in the coming months.

Harm Reduction | High Rockies Harm Reduction

Deliverable Status

• High Rockies Harm Reduction’s Work Plan, with notes, status updates, and links to relevant documents can be found in this Google Sheets document: R5COAC Work Plan/Contractor Scope Tracking

• All deliverables are currently on schedule.

Data Gathered/Reach

• Between December 18, 2023 and March 27th, 2024, High Rockies Harm Reduction delivered 18 service events across Region 5:

  • Eagle County events: 1

  • Garfield County events: 14

  • Lake County events: 1

  • Pitkin County events: 2

  • Summit County events: 0

• Note: High Rockies Harm Reduction’s contract specifies that monthly provisions in each county should begin by May 31st, 2024. Despite the quantity of events detailed above by county, the relevant deliverable is considered on-track for this reporting period.

• During these events High Rockies Harm Reduction distributed the following supplies:

  • Narcan (two doses per box): 110

  • Kloxxado (two doses per box): 58

  • Intramuscular Naloxone: 3

  • Fentanyl Test Strips: 481

  • Condoms: 4

  • Sterile Snorting Kits: 3

Accomplishments

• High Rockies Harm Reduction has confirmed consistent dates and locations for ongoing monthly service provisions in four of the five regional counties:

  • 2nd Fridays - Eagle/Garfield County

    • Midvalley Family Practice, Basalt, 12 pm - 2 pm

    • Third Street Center, Carbondale, 4 pm - 6 pm

  • 4th Thursdays - Eagle County

    • Eagle County Paramedics Services, Edwards, 4 pm - 6 pm

    • Eagle Health Care Center, Eagle (time TBD)

  • 4th Fridays - Summit County

    • Colorado Mountain College, Breckenridge, 12 pm - 2 pm

    • Frisco Transfer Center, Frisco, 4 pm - 6 pm

  • 4th Saturdays - Lake County

    • 1115 Harrison Ave, Leadville, 12 pm - 6 pm

  • Note: A location for Pitkin county services has not been identified. A special Harm Reduction Workgroup meeting for Pitkin county has been scheduled for Friday, May 3rd. More details available in the following section (Challenges/Barriers/Changes)

• High Rockies Harm Reduction has identified at least one volunteer candidate in all five counties.

  • In 2023 two volunteer trainings took place in Lake County, and one training took place in Garfield County.

    • From the volunteer training in Garfield county, one attendee is now a full-time (30 hours/week) Peer Support Specialist employee with High Rockies Harm Reduction.

  • High Rockies Harm Reduction is currently working on organizing volunteer training opportunities in Eagle, Summit and Pitkin counties with the identified candidates. Candidates in these counties were identified through public educational efforts and events.

Challenges/Barriers/Changes

• Finding consistent locations for monthly services in Pitkin and Garfield County has become a challenge for High Rockies Harm Reduction.

  • Particularly in Pitkin County, navigating the many jurisdictions/special districts and a lack of strong relationships with location operators has delayed the schedule for this part of the county. Ideally High Rockies Harm Reduction would be able to find a location where local workforce could access services during the day. This is especially difficult in resort towns where parking lots are not central, and closer locations are privately owned.

    • In order to address this challenge, a special Pitkin-county specific Harm Reduction meeting has been scheduled for Friday May 3rd.

  • There are some strong leads for locations in Garfield County, High Rockies Harm Reduction is currently working on confirming dates and times.

• High Rockies Harm Reduction purchased a vehicle at the beginning of their contract term with the Region 5 Council in order to provide services in all five counties. However, High Rockies Harm Reduction’s budget combined with specific requirements for a vehicle did not yield ideal results.

  • High Rockies Harm Reduction needs a vehicle where service attendees can effectively “step inside” and receive services, peer support, and referrals in a sheltered and private setting.

    • The van High Rockies Harm Reduction purchased allows for this format of interaction. However, from a mechanical standpoint, there are several shortfalls. The van is not four-wheel-drive, making it difficult to drive in the winter especially over mountain passes between Eagle, Lake, and Summit counties.

  • The vehicle has also required significant repairs to the electrical system. High Rockies Harm Reduction missed some service provisions in Eagle and Summit counties during this reporting period because the car needed to be towed or was in the mechanic’s shop.

Data Dashboard | The OMNI Institute

Deliverable Status

• OMNI’s Work Plan, with notes, status updates, and links to relevant documents can be found in this Google Sheets document R5COAC Work Plan/Contractor Scope Tracking

• All deliverables are currently on schedule.

Data Gathered/Reach

• On January, 25th 2024 OMNI facilitated an initial Strategic Planning session that included Region 5 OAC Council members as well as representation from the larger landscape of regional stakeholders, including health care, nonprofit, and criminal justice organizations.

  • During this session, as well as in a follow-up meeting, OMNI built awareness about the dashboard, and gathered feedback about specific data indicators that attendees felt would be helpful or relevant to include.

• OMNI is due to begin collecting data for the dashboard in the following reporting period. These efforts will include accessing publicly available data and establishing connections with the holders of privately owned data as well.

Accomplishments

• Using outcomes from the planning sessions OMNI facilitated in early 2024, a final Strategic Plan was shared with the Data Dashboard Workgroup in early April. The plan includes a final list of data indicators that OMNI will aim to collect, the dashboard’s purpose, target audiences, and Considerations & Limitations. Please click here to view the final Strategic Plan: Colorado Region 5 Opioid Abatement Data Dashboard Strategic Plan.pdf

  • Based on both feedback from the Strategic Planning attendees and outcome from Effct’s focus group efforts, the dashboard will include data indicators related to general substance use, risk factors, and social determinants as well as opioid specific data.

• OMNI is leading contractor alignment conversations with Effct and High Rockies Harm Reduction, ensuring that current work is complementary.

• OMNI and Data Dashboard Workgroup members have begun to compile contacts and organizations that can provide data identified in the Strategic Plan.

  • While some data is publicly available, other data sources are privately held by special districts, data collection agencies, or private organizations (such as healthcare providers) and will require significant coordination and relationship-building by OMNI.

  • While Workgroup members have the regional knowledge regarding data sources to direct OMNI’s efforts, OMNI will likely need to conduct a majority of the outreach. Data Dashboard Workgroup members have pondered that certain data-holding organizations may be more willing to provide OMNI, a third-party organization that has extensive data experience, with their data rather than local government officials.

Challenges/Barriers/Changes

• As Workgroup discussions turned towards obtaining the data identified in the Strategic Plan, the OMNI team began to think about Data Sharing Agreements (DSA). These internal discussions raised a challenge; the long-term maintenance and ownership of the Data Dashboard has bearing on how DSAs are written and developed. At this time, OMNI’s formal contract with the Region 5 OAC expires October 31, 2025.

  • During a Data Dashboard Workgroup meeting, Council members recalled that OMNI was, in part, initially chosen for this contract because they had the capacity and skills to offer maintenance of the dashboard beyond the term of the current contract.

• OMNI put together an estimate for taking on this role of maintaining the dashboard long-term.

  • Base-level maintenance would require roughly $30,000 per year.

    • This would not include services such as design changes, adding data indicators, or annual report deliverables. Such requirements could be added to a contract for additional funding.

  • Workgroup members will connect about the sustainability of the dashboard so that Data Sharing Agreement development can move forward. Additional updates will be shared in the following progress report.