On March 1, 2019, the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD) and Faces & Voices of Recovery (FAVOR) co-hosted a call on State alcohol and drug agency coordination and collaboration with Recovery Community Organizations (RCOs).

The call featured examples of SSA-RCO collaboration through presentations by the following speakers:

• Cassandra Price (NASADAD President; Director, Office of Addictive Diseases, GA Dept. of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities)
• Neil Campbell (Executive Director, Georgia Council on Substance Abuse)
• Sara Goldsby (Director, South Carolina Dept. of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services [DAODAS])
• Rich Jones (CEO/COO, FAVOR Greenville)

After introductions from Patty McCarthy Metcalf, Executive Director of FAVOR, and Rob Morrison, Executive Director of NASADAD, Sara Goldsby started her presentation with  a description of her State’s workforce vision: “South Carolina will have a stable, competent, multidisciplinary workforce that is qualified and adequate in number to ensure effective prevention, intervention, treatment and recovery services for substance use disorders.” Director Goldsby spoke about the increased provision of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) over the past 2 years, and coinciding focus on recovery support services. Recovery support services are being funded in large part through the State Targeted Response (STR), State Opioid Response (SOR) grant programs. Some recovery-specific initiatives in SC include: Certified Peer Support Specialist Training; Emergency Department Stabilization; Peer Intervention with Law Enforcement; Engagement in Treatment and Transition Supports; Peer Support for Inmates (Jails and Prisons) & Drug Courts; and Engaging Families.

After Director Goldsby’s presentation, Rich Jones spoke about the role and history of FAVOR SC. FAVOR SC formed with a mission of promoting long-term recovery from substance use disorders through education, advocacy and recovery support services, resulting in healthier individuals, families, and communities. Since its inception in 2006, FAVOR SC has grown tremendously, and Mr. Jones noted that such growth wouldn’t be possible without the support of DAODAS. DAODAS’s strategic funding of individual chapters and special projects across the State has been essential to FAVOR SC’s success. Mr. Jones and Director Goldsby noted the importance of the relationship between their two entities in ensuring and enhancing recovery support for South Carolinians.

Director Price and Ms. Campbell then presented on their collaborative work to increase recovery support services in Georgia. They reviewed a timeline of recovery-focused initiatives in the State, starting in 2001 when Georgia became the first State in the country to provide Medicaid reimbursement for certified peer specialists. The presenters described their work as being similar to the recovery process itself, highlighting the following factors: building relationships by showing up for each other, honest communication, accountability, understanding that we’re in this together, building common goals, and being a good ally.

Slides from the guest presenters can be accessed below:

• Recovery Services & Work with FAVOR SC – Sara Goldsby, Director, South Carolina Dept. of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services
• FAVOR SC– Rich Jones, CEO/COO, FAVOR Greenville
• SSA-RCO Collaboration in Georgia – Cassandra Price, Director, Office of Addictive Diseases, GA Dept. of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities, and Neil Campbell, Executive Director, Georgia Council on Substance Abuse