INITIATIVES

According to Merriam-Webster, initiative means taking a step; energy or aptitude displayed in action; enterprise.

Drug Free Duval convenes the community around initiatives that will incrementally or boldly stimulate responses that offer the opportunity for different outcomes. Initiatives all involve some type of immediate reverberation yet also stand as cornerstones for the next level of growth. 

The initiatives may be as direct and focused as providing information – good, sourced data and education – to clarify confusions and dispel urban legends. Some initiatives are dedicated to enhancing skills through innovative training or workshops or retreats so participants increase options. Some initiatives involve creating and supporting activities around reduced risk while others break down barriers by improving access and processes to expand opportunities to engage systems of care and support. Often, initiatives are directed at changing consequences such as creating opportunities for public recognition for pro-social behavior or increasing taxes or fines to encourage reducing practices that lead to health obstacles. Even the physical design or structure of a facility or event can impact the community’s perception and behavior: signage and landscapes, density and lighting are all initiatives that can be part of solutions. Ultimately, the community examines things like rules and workplace policies, law enforcement procedures and ordinances within government, employer, community and organizations to work toward foundational practices that support the goals of cultural change.

Duval County and the North Florida region have demonstrated the commitment to the process by engaging in every step of the planning and initiative implementation. The Coalition has over 1500 individuals who invest at various levels through attendance, data sharing, training, advocacy and volunteering, and more than 40 formalized partnerships with agencies, healthcare providers, employers and groups. Collaboration is what has enabled Drug Free Duval to move toward fulfilling the charge of the community: freedom from substance abuse for all. 



Initiatives

Community Trainings:

  • Signs & Symptoms of Misuse - Prescription Drugs and Opioids

  • Safe Storage & Safe Disposal (includes a Deterra safe-disposal bag for attendees)

  • Drug Sharing: the Social & Legal Implications

  • Opioid Overdose and Narcan Administration (includes an opiod overdose reversal Narcan kit for attendees)

  • Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: Prevention for a Healthy Start (NAS – impact of substance use on maternal & child health, and tools for prevention)

  • Vaping: Awareness and Action

  • Strategic Prevention Framework – way of work for impacting social and behavioral issues within a community

 

Youth resiliency and choosing health:

  • Duval Co+Lab – a dynamic and innovative group of youth coming together with the goal of raising awareness for better health for their peers and community.

  • Natural High – exciting curriculum that helps kids understand simple science about their brains, and what happens when they use something foreign to create a high; helps them identify the natural high of celebrities…and then of themselves

  • Stoke – a partner social marketing & media campaign that supports teens as they determine and choosing their natural high and learn to encourage others to do the same. Schools can create Stoke Clubs and really make this a MOVEMENT!

  • Know the Law – helping youth understand the laws that commonly impact them

 

Parent Engagement and Support:

  • Tools for Engagement (TFE) – an education curriculum that equips parents with some straight-talk about how their children’s brains function along with data about risk behavior right here in Jax…but doesn’t stop there. TFE provides evidence about the impact of parent influence on their teens, then equips parents with tools and responses that increase the potential for reducing risk behavior.

  • Natural High/Stoke – Sessions for parents designed to educate so they can support their children as they strive to recognize, expand and follow their own natural high. Includes methods to encourage others around to do the same.

  • Know the Law – helping parents understand the laws that commonly impact youth, and how to help them navigate with safety and confidence

  • Hidden in Plain Sight – training that includes a tool to help parents identify the signs of drug use by their teen



Diving into the Community:

  • Environmental Scans

  • Festival Scans

  • Sticker Shock

  • Town Hall events

  • North Florida Poly-Drug Task Force – meets quarterly to get the lay of the land regarding regional prevention, intervention and treatment and to hear from each committee (Community Education & Training, Healthcare Education and Training and Employer/Workforce) about their activities, successes and barriers impacting each of the respective areas

  • Drug Take Back Events



All About Learning:

  • Lunch and Learns – provided regularly to keep the community up-to-date on emerging trends, data and encourage networking and collaboration

  • Drug Trends (annually updated with local data and trends)



Universal Screening for risk behavior with protocols:

  • SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention & Referral to Treatment) including initial training on the Wellscreen web-based tool. SBIRT is the gold-standard according to SAMHSA, and is recommended by the ACOG (American College of Obstetrics & Gynecology) for all pregnant women.

  • Motivational Interviewing and Brief Intervention



Partners

We applaud the courage, tenacity, agility to pivot and bold consistency of these organizations, currently engaging in the process of population-level change.