To address substance abuse prevention Dr. Meena Brewster, the county’s Health Officer and director of the St. Mary’s County Health Department, is calling for community-wide action to address substance abuse prevention and control. “Our community needs to come together to address this issue. Our health care providers are working hard to treat those who seek help with their substance abuse problem, but this community problem goes beyond just treatment,” stated Brewster. “We need to also identify ways to prevent substance abuse from starting and to teach families and others how to detect it early on before it advances. We need to improve the ways people can access care, navigate the health care system, and stay clean for the long-haul. This is a chronic issue and we have to look at it as a community issue, not just something ‘someone else’ is dealing with.” Dr. Brewster is calling for community organizations and residents to voice concerns and be part of the solution through St. Mary’s local health improvement coalition, the Healthy St. Mary’s Partnership. This coalition has identified “Behavioral Health” as one of its top priorities – this includes substance abuse prevention and control as well as mental health. The Partnership […]
↧