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Substance Abuse -
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In recent
history Carroll County Maryland has had a sad
notoriety as having an abnormally high heroin
addiction problem. Associated with alcohol and
illicit drug use are often other serious problems.
Our organization supports efforts to increase focus,
finding and actions that address substance abuse in
our community. |
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In the
national study,
Healthy People 2010, substance abuse is
cited as a leading healthy indicator. It is
recommended that programs who focus on reducing
substance abuse in their communities target efforts
to; increase substance abuse treatment options,
increase the number of middle schools and high
schools who provide information about health risk
behaviors, and increase abstinence from alcohol,
drugs and cigarettes by pregnant women. Healthy
people 2010 points out that alcohol and illicit drug
use are associated with motor vehicle crashes,
homicides, suicides, and drowning- leading causes of
death among youth. Long-term heavy drinking can lead
to heart disease, cancer, alcohol-related liver
disease, and pancreatitis. Alcohol use during
pregnancy is known to cause fetal alcohol syndrome,
a leading cause of preventable mental retardation.
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Many gaps in service have been
identified in our county including a
lack of a long term treatment facility
for heroin users, lack of space/
capacity for current residential
programs, insufficient detox services,
no half way houses, inadequate services
for adolescents with co-occurring
disorders, and a need for more
prevention services. The
Partnership for a Healthier Carroll
County is dedicated to supporting all
efforts in our county to battle
substance abuse. Our agency goals
include: |
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Increasing focus, funding and actions to address
substance abuse. |
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Increasing the proportion of adults and youth
not using alcohol or illicit drugs |
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Decreasing the proportion of adults and youth
engaging in binge drinking |
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Decreasing cigarette smoking by youth and adults |
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Assisting with the development of support
services for tobacco cessation and those
recovering from substance abuse and their
families |
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Encourage the establishment of state, county and
municipal policies to achieve smoke-free
environments in public common areas and
enforcement regarding the sale of tobacco and
alcohol to minors |
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Many
programs in our county are cooperatively working on
these issues including:
Residents Attacking Drugs,
Guiding Good Choices Parenting Program, Reality
Early Intervention Program, States Attorneys First
Offender Program, Fool Proof improv, Teen Quit
Smoking Program, Tobacco Coalition,
NotMyKid, After Prom Parties, 21st
Century Learning Centers, Annual Drug Summit, and
the
Heroin Action Coalition
for example. |
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The
Partnership currently coordinates a collaborative
effort to open a new Residential Continuum Care
Facility ( halfway house) for recovering drug
abusers in our county. The group is working to
secure a location and ongoing funding for this
program. Read the Carroll County Times article
"Group
advocates halfway house" for more information. |
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The
Partnership is also part of collaborative effort
which resulted in a
Substance
Abuse Resource Directory
which is available on this website and
includes not only a list of treatment options but
also a large information section on insurance, lab
testing, urine drug tests, principals of effective
treatment, how to tell if someone has a drug
problem, helping your child say no to drugs, how to
answer if your child asks about your drug history
and the link between substance abuse and sexual
violence. |
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In
addition, The Partnership is an active partner and
group member of several local committees including;
the Behavioral Health and Addictions Advisory
Council, Risky Business,
NotMyKid,
Carroll County Substance Abuse Prevention Committee,
and the Co-occurring Grants committee. |
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