Opioid hub hears updates

Every seat around the circle of tables was filled as reports on education, treatment, workforce, mental health and housing were made by area agencies at the Washington County Hub meeting at the Gold Star Park community building Thursday.

The hub, formerly called the opioid hub, was formed last year under the guidance of the Washington County Behavioral Health Board to coordinate services and aid between government agencies, nonprofits and other community leaders in response to the drug epidemic in Washington County.

At Thursday’s meeting, Fort Frye Local Schools Superintendent Stephanie Starcher notified attendees that the education subcommittee has discussed a tandem notification program for school systems to be informed when a child has experienced some form of trauma and was visited at home by a first responder.

“It’s called ‘Handle with Care,’ and it’s a simple notification that lets the teachers through the administration know ‘hey, this child should be dealt with how we’ve been trained, with trauma-informed care,’” she explained.

Life and Purpose Director of Clinical Services Janice McFarland reported from the treatment subcommittee that plans are moving forward for a physical community resource center at 274 Front St. in Marietta to be open this summer.

She and Southeastern Ohio Legal Services representative Robin Bozian explained that the intended purpose of the center will be to have volunteer/VISTA Corps members helping individuals navigate through resources offered by agencies and nonprofits in the area when looking for treatment, housing, utility aid, food and other social services.

McFarland said the center would be open after regular business hours to ensure the targeted populations have more opportunities to utilize the resource.

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