Our History
Drug Safe Solano was founded in Fall of 2018 with a generous grant for start up funding and continued support from MedMark Treatment Centers in Fairfield. The Solano Coalition for Better Health took the lead and formed this coalition, originally named the Solano Opioid Safety Coalition. In September 2019, the coalition transitioned to join Touro University California and became Drug Safe Solano. They have been working closely with other partners to empower communities to respond to the challenges of the opiate epidemic. For more information about Touro, click here.
Drug Safe Solano has successfully brought together a motivated multidisciplinary team to address opioid addiction issues in our community. Strategies are currently in development or in place to improve services for opioid addiction treatment, prevention, and harm reduction as well.
The coalition was also one of 6 coalitions nationwide selected to be involved in TI-ROSC, or Trauma Informed, Recovery-Oriented Systems of Care, which was set up to help some of the social determinants of substance use involvement and outcomes. As of November, 2022, we were the only Coalition of the 6 selected that was putting strategies and education in place, setting us up to be on the leading edge of providing recovery and treatment services!
Mission and Vision
The mission of Drug Safe Solano is threefold:
1. We seek to remove the stigma of addiction, serve as a resource for patients and professionals, and increase public education of the opioid crisis and the use of naloxone to save lives.
2. We are committed to saving lives by preventing opioid overdoses and deaths through reducing the number of opioid prescriptions and providing education and resources for the safe disposal of prescription opioids.
3. We will work to expand access to Medication-Assisted Treatment and other forms of treatment, in both inpatient and outpatient settings.
Vision:
All Solano County residents have equitable access to opportunities that enable them to lead healthy lives within a safe and healthy community free of misuse of drugs.
Goals
- Lower opioid prescription rates
- Increase access to MAT and outpatient treatment and resources
- Increase naloxone availability in the community and to first responders
- Increase awareness about opioid addiction in the community and with medical providers
- Secure funding to sustain the Opioid Coalition and its project activities
Highlights
- Built a 40-member coalition that includes representatives from the county’s four healthcare systems, eight federally qualified health centers, largest ambulance service, independent pharmacies, county substance abuse services, jail, drug courts, county medical and dental societies, and Touro University, as well as the county’s hub and spoke Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) facility (including MedMark), Medi-Cal (Medicaid) administrator, and public health department.
- Developed new action teams focusing on expanding MAT access and harm reduction services, providing education and outreach to communities in Solano, addressing sustainability through data and communication, expanding access to Narcan with training and increased distribution.
- Provided educational training for the probation department that addressed the opioid epidemic, best practices, harm reduction and trauma informed approaches.
- Earned multiple grants — including one to participate on the California Opioid Safety Network Accelerator Program, which allows access to subject matter experts in the field — as well as monthly coaching calls and state-wide resources such as webinars, tool kits, and opportunities to learn from 32 other counties participating in the program. This grant also provides funding for an AmeriCorps VISTA worker to help support and expand our coalition capacity and our activities to combat the opioid epidemic.
- On July 23rd, 2019, the Solano County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the expansion of medication-assisted treatment into Solano County Jails. This program will help inmates who have an opioid addiction be managed safely and with compassion. Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder typically involves the use of a medicine called Buprenorphine to take away the cravings that result with the withdrawal of the opioid, allowing the person to work on positive behavioral changes.
Learn More
Interested to know more about our organization? Reach us at info@drugsafesolano.org for more details.