Pen Bay Medical Center, in collaboration with the Knox County Recovery Collaborative (KCRC), will be seeking community input regarding opioid use in Knox County. The input, analysis, and focus group data generated is in conjunction with a $200,000 Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) grant that PBMC received from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

The RCORP is a multi-year initiative to address barriers to access in rural communities related to substance use disorder (SUD), including opioid use disorder (OUD). RCORP funds multi-sector consortia to enhance their ability to implement and sustain SUD/OUD prevention, treatment and recovery services in underserved rural areas.

PBMC will work in collaboration with the Knox County Recovery Collaborative (KCRC) to implement this planning grant over the next 18 months. The KCRC is made up of a wide range of organizations and people from across Knox County who work toward creating a recovery ready community.

The group will work together to:

 conduct a community needs assessment and gap analysis to create a detailed and in-depth analysis of Knox County’s existing services, resources and opportunities in OUD prevention, treatment and recovery;

 develop a comprehensive strategic plan and accompanying action plan that details how community members can work together to reduce opioid use and mortality in every community in Knox County;

 strengthen and expand the existing KCRC, defining partners’ expanded roles and responsibilities in implementing the action plan created as part of the grant; and

 establish data collection and evaluation structures needed to monitor the progress and impact of the actions taken.

The grant work begins this fall with the community needs assessment. The project team will compile existing data and use targeted interviews and focus groups to gather more in-depth information about OUD resources and gaps in Knox County.

Community members whose lives have been impacted by OUD and are interested in participating in a focus group are encouraged to contact Adrienne Gallant, project coordinator, at 301-3951 or agallant@pbmc.org.

About Pen Bay Medical Center
Pen Bay Medical Center is part of MaineHealth, a not-for-profit integrated health system consisting of eight local hospital systems, a comprehensive behavioral healthcare network, diagnostic services, home health agencies, and more than 1,600 employed and independent physicians working together through an Accountable Care Organization. With more than 19,000 employees, MaineHealth is the largest health system in northern New England and provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. For more information, please visit pbmc.org.