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Join
the Northern Gila County Alliance Against
Substance Abuse Coalition
and
"Make a Difference" in our Rim Country
Communities
Prevention:
“A proactive
process that empowers individuals and systems to
meet the challenges of life events and
transitions by creating and reinforcing
conditions that promote healthy behaviors and
lifestyles.”
Purpose of a Community
Coalition: A
five-year study of community partnerships showed that communities with
coalitions have a lower rate of substance abuse than matched communities
without coalitions. (CSAP 1999)
Effective Community Coalitions with
strong member input can help change community norms and values, create a
wider base of support for behavioral change, develop greater capacity
for successful interventions, galvanize public support and lead to
long-term changes.
Coalition Membership:
It needs to
be diverse and represent the community as a
whole. Therefore, it needs representatives of
the respective ethnic and racial groups in the
community. Members need to be recruited
that represent high-risk youth and their
parents, individuals in recovery, business
community, media, schools, youth-serving
organizations, college, law enforcement,
religious and fraternal organizations, civic and
volunteer groups, health care professionals,
state, local and tribal governments.
Where do we go from here? ADHS had mandated that all
Prevention Programs address Substance Abuse this year with special
interest being in Methamphetamine Abuse and Underage Drinking. SBH/RIM
has been given the opportunity to spearhead this effort through the
development of the Community Mobilization Coordinator position. We need
to revise our Mission Statement, below, and only address Substance
Abuse.
Proposal:
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Strengthen
the Council
Membership with more community stakeholders participating.
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Develop an Assessment
of the Community (statistical information and focus groups)
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Develop Community
Presentations and Town Halls on both issues.
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Change Community Values
(especially in regard to underage drinking)
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Support the efforts of
those already addressing these issues; i.e., law enforcement
Suggested First Steps:
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Coalition Building
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Prevention Strategies
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Assessment Tools
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