We are excited to announce that the Sacramento Native American Health Center (SNAHC) has been selected to participate in the Indian Health Service Community Opioid Intervention Pilot Project: a 3-year grant program for combatting the opioid epidemic among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people
SNAHC’s Three Rivers to Recovery program utilizes Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) to reduce unmet treatment needs and opioid overdose-related deaths. The program will also access SNAHC’s vast partner networks to increase public awareness about culturally appropriate and family-centered opioid prevention, treatment, and recovery practices. MAT is a safe and successful treatment approach that has been used by SNAHC since 2016, and in partnership with the University of California Davis since 2019. The number “three” in the program name symbolizes the three rivers of Sacramento, as well as the importance of acknowledging past, present, and future generations in opioid behavioral, medical, and community health care.
The Three Rivers to Recovery program provides $1.5 million dollars in services and health education to the greater Sacramento AI/AN community. “Providing access to culturally appropriate treatment and recovery services that utilize best practices in combination with pharmacological medications and behavioral health therapies is part of SNAHC’s whole person care delivery,” said Britta Guerrero, SNAHC’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are proud to be part of a solution to the opioid epidemic because we know that from recovery emerges hope – and we stay hopeful that each person who heals from addiction strengthens a family and as a result our entire community.”
Julio Cruz, SNAHC’s Behavioral Health Program Manager, views the program as a step towards meeting patients where they are and helping them foster wellness and recovery in their lives through harm reduction treatment approaches, cultural practices, and family and community support. “Community feedback and participation will be a key element to this program,” said Cruz. “Together we can reduce the horrific impact the opioid epidemic has had on our communities and build a legacy of healing and hope for the future.”
SNAHC is proud to participate in the Indian Health Service Community Opioid Intervention Pilot Project and looks forward to its positive impact on the AI/AN community.
