Substance Use Prevention Coalition Provides Orientation for Prospective
Members
[August 16, 2025]
The August meeting of the Substance Use Prevention Coalition (SUPC) at
Lincoln Memorial Hospital (LMH) included an orientation for prospective
members. The SUPC exists to prevent youth substance use, to provide
community education, and to improve access to resources The top three
goals of the SUPC are sustained decrease in youth use of 1) Marijuana,
2) Alcohol and 3) Tobacco use. The meeting was led by Grace Irvin,
Prevention Coordinator with Chestnut Health Systems.
The goal of the SUPC is to establish and maintain substance use
prevention strategies that have both sustainability and cultural
competence. The Strategic Prevention Strategy includes five components:
1) Assess Needs, 2) Build Capacity, 3) Plan– select interventions, 4)
Implement-- deliver practices and adapt, retaining core components, and
5) Evaluate what works and what needs to be improved. This strategy is
particularly targeted toward local youth usage of marijuana, alcohol,
and tobacco. Community research indicates that marijuana and alcohol are
used in equal percentages among local youth with tobacco use coming in
third.
Implementation of prevention strategies include youth prevention
education in public schools, Red Ribbon Week at schools, National
Prevention Week activities, a high school anti-vaping campaign, and a
high school texting campaign at LCHS. A new initiative is a social norms
campaign, which is a strategy to teach students that although it may
seem to teenagers like many or most teens are using substances at school
or in the community, the data suggests otherwise. Another initiative is
the Parent Alcohol Communication Campaign using curriculum provided by
the state.
The Illinois Youth Survey collects data every other year, which provides
information for developing and continuing prevention programs. Other
initiatives include annual Drug Take Back Days, free disposal bags for
expired drug collection at LMH and the Logan County Health Department, a
program called Sticker Shock designed to reach adults who might purchase
alcohol and provide to minors with information stickers applied to cases
of alcohol, and the program Hidden in Plain Sight to educate parents
about how youth may conceal and store drugs, vapes, or alcohol.
[to top of second column]
|
Discussion among attendees ensued about Tall Cop and the value of his
information and presentations regarding emerging drug trends. He has a
TikTok presence, a website, a conference, a newsletter, podcasts,
webinars, and live presentations for a variety of audiences. SUPC
meeting leaders expressed the desire to bring him to our community and
the possibility of pooling resources to bring him here and also
arranging for continuing education credits.
Discussion continued about prevention strategies already implemented and
who else may be interested in SUPC and would be a valuable addition to
SUPC meetings.
In partner updates, Recovery-Oriented Systems of Care (ROSC) partnered
with law enforcement to sponsor a successful Breaking Barriers day in
Lincoln with speakers from both parties. Upcoming events include a
Naloxone Discussion Panel with live and virtual options and Walk for
Recovery in both Havana and Lincoln. ROSC meets the third Thursday of
the month in a hybrid meeting.
The Railer Reach Out texting campaign is now available for all students
at LCHS. Currently it is at double the subscription from last year when
it was only open to freshmen for its implementation year.
The next Community Health Collaborative meeting is September 4 at LMH at
8:30 a.m. The next SUPC meeting is September 11 at LMH at 9 a.m. in the
Steinfort conference rooms. Both meetings also have the option to attend
virtually.
[Stephanie Hall]
|
