The Rotary Club is a network of more than one million people who want to create lasting change in people and the world. Larry Kenmore is a club leader and head of the action group for addiction prevention in North America. He believes having multiple programs in one (1) Project to combat addiction is essential, and The Rotary Action Group Addiction Prevention has created the one important Project. The Rotary has local clubs worldwide and is best known for helping to eradicate polio. They’ve taken on the project of ending the opioid epidemic because they felt drug addiction was being handled in a similar way. As they did then, they’re making a difference now. Seven years ago, they created an addiction prevention action group. Within the Rotary Club, they say, “the data speaks for itself.” So far, no one has created a successful prevention and recovery program. Part of this has to do with the fact that addiction and recovery is such an individual journey. There will never be a one-size-fits-all answer, and RAG AP knows that; it will take a Project and not just one (1) Program to solve this issue.However, Larry also believes politicians can be blamed for the lack of progress. They don’t seem interested in lowering the number of addicts—only reducing overdose deaths. They just want to make it look like they’ve done something.Once the government stepped aside in the polio problem, it got better. The Rotary Club is working towards similar results with this effort. The addiction prevention group has a leader on each continent, and Larry is the leader for North America. When creating the group and designing programs, they used “the polio playbook.” They looked at polio cases and determined what programs did and didn’t work, and they used that information to analyze the opioid crisis.They decided to focus on five programs within one project, and Larry seems optimistic that this initiative will work, as each of the five (5) Programs in one (1) Project are not working in silos but in tandem with each other.One of their projects involves naloxone training and distribution. In 2019, there was a dip in opioid deaths, and they concluded that this was because there was a massive uptick in the amount of Naloxone training and distribution. COVID put a wrench in that, but they had enough evidence to know it worked. Many communities offer this training, but only about 10% of people who need the knowledge receive it. The Rotary will help increase that percentage.They also have education programs in the local schools to help kids understand what addiction looks like, how to avoid it, etc. Unlike traditional programs, they offer age-based education so that the young kids aren’t receiving the same information as high schoolers.It should be a learning journey that starts in kindergarten; that is why this is the 20 year committed Project to addressing this crisis.The Rotary Club is taking steps to end the opioid crisis and put a stop to addiction. Get involved with the club by clicking here. And if you or a loved one is struggling, don’t hesitate to call Scott H. Silverman at 619-993-2738. (c) 2022 Scott H Silverman. All Rights Reserved.What is Rotary?
Rotary Action Group: Addiction Prevention
