DOJ Grant Helps Launch Program In Tulsa To Combat Opioid Use In At-risk Youth 

Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences (OSU-CHS) is launching a program in the Tulsa metro to combat opioid use in at-risk youth.

OSU-CHS is partnering with Youth Services of Tulsa with the goal of helping five to six families who have been impacted by opioids and other substances.

The health center received a $707,310 grant from the Department of Justice to implement the Opioid Affected Youth Initiative program. Director of Programs for OSU Center for Rural Health Dallas McCance said Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of adverse childhood experiences or “ACEs” in the nation and one of the highest rates of opioid overdoses.

"What happens with youth is when they figure out that there is a quick fix that they can take a substance and then feel better, then they want to do that over and over again," she continued saying, "What we are trying to do is show them there are better ways to deal with things."

McCance said the Opioid Affected Youth Initiative program will strengthen families, a proven method to help fight youth substance abuse. "We are going to bring families together so that they can share a meal, they can have activities for the parents or caregivers or the grandparents, also activities for the youth to build resiliency, to build connections, and to have a closer relationship," she said. "That way they have those protective factors that can help them better fight the urge to self-medicate with substances."

The target area for the program includes six nearby rural and underserved counties. McCance said it is evidence-based and has already proven to be highly effective across the nation.