The Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Board is responsible for distributing about $1 billion in grants to help communities address the opioid crisis. At the board’s most recent meeting, Edmond city officials shared how they’ve used some of the funds.
Christy Batterson, who has worked for the city since 2010, stood in front of the board to thank them for their support. She said opioid grant money is being used to expand behavioral health and substance abuse services, strengthening the city’s system of care.
Batterson is in charge of housing and community development. She is Edmond’s point person for grant applications. While preparing this one, she knew the local courts had to be involved.
Using opioid relief funds, the city now pays for a counselor to be present in juvenile court every day.
Shelia Stinnett, who also spoke on behalf of the city during the meeting, said having someone with a mental health background in the courtroom has made a big difference.
“These are families who are at a critical moment,” Stinnett, an assistant director at Edmond Family Counseling, said. “They show up and we can reach out to those families and work closely with juvenile court and provide on-site support for those families.”
Stinnett said the city has supported more than 200 families by connecting them to mental health services.
Along with changes at the municipal court, Batterson and Stinnett said relief funds are being used for education.
Stinnett said there is a misconception among some students in Edmond schools that they are spared from addiction issues because it is generally considered a safe place to live. But Stinnett said substance abuse “doesn’t discriminate."
She also said people who start using substances at a young age are more likely to develop an addiction later in life.
“We really want to focus that funding on those kids who are at risk,” Stinnett said.
Brad Clark, Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s general counsel, said the board plans to invite other municipalities and organizations to share their progress at future meetings.
“We can sit in these meetings and look at spreadsheets and graphs and so on, but there’s certainly a human element to every story that we hear, every grantee, every project, every program,” Clark said. “We can get that focus in these meetings.”
At the meeting, board members also announced they are one step closer to having a way to track state-wide grant outcomes. Three firms applied to monitor the success of the funds the board is distributing.
The Opioid Abatement Board shared it will likely open the next round of grant applications for relief funds in March.
