‘We cannot give up:’ Hope Partnership Project navigates impact of COVID-19 on recovery
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CHILLICOTHE — In 2020, overdoses, overdose responses and overdose deaths in Ross County hit an all-time high, breaking records previously set in 2016.
That year, 44 people died as a result of the opioid epidemic. This year, Dr. John Gabis, a founding and current member of the Hope Partnership Project, believes the number will be greater than 50.
Two years ago, the Heroin Partnership Project changed its name to shift focus from responding to the opioid epidemic to inspiring hope in the community in an effort to rebuild and move forward. These days, because of the disconnection between people caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the need for the program only persists.
“It was mind-changing to see the impact of the name change,” Gabis said. “It signified a change in becoming proactive instead of reactive. We were looking at the long-range and that’s why in 2020 we wanted to mature our infrastructure.”
At the start of 2020, the Hope Partnership Project was looking for stability. In October 2018, the group not only changed its name but underwent a strategic planning process where subcommittees were restructured to help reach more people struggling with substance use disorder and provide a progressive plan.
While the HPP has only been known as such for a little more than two years, the program has existed in some form since at least 2010. At the time, Gabis was working as the Ross County Coroner and began noticing an uptick in deaths caused by opioids.
Inspired to do something, Gabis helped form a committee of community leaders. The group used different names like the Coalition Against Drug Abuse and the Drug Abuse Reduction Taskforce (DART) before receiving a grant to work as the Heroin Partnership Project.
While the Heroin Partnership Project served as a functional name, in the beginning, Gabis and other members realized they needed to become more “forward-thinking” and provide services to those in need rather than focus solely on decreasing opioid deaths. In late 2018, the current iteration of the HPP was formed.
At the start of 2019, the Hope Partnership Project rebrand included a new focus for subcommittees dedicated to prevention, trauma-informed care, community education and awareness, criminal justice, health care — including medical and mental health — recovery and treatment services, advocacy and policymaking.
They also continued work with area collaborators including Adena Health System, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Ohio University-Chillicothe, places of worship as well as the city, the Chillicothe and Ross County Public Library and many others.
Later that year, $1 million was awarded to health providers and others that make up the HPP. The funds allowed the Ross Community Opioid Response Program (Ross CORP), a consortium of HPP, to focus existing efforts on broad, deeper impact within Ross County. For a three-year period, the funds will help cover expenses needed for programming and services.
Gabis said that while they hoped the grant would continue to allow the HPP to reorganize its focus, he hoped to examine areas of need in the community for people in recovery by focusing on the social determinants of health like housing, transportation and treatment.
But then, the coronavirus pandemic hit in early 2020. Quickly, the agency realized the challenges of staying connected with collaborators and in turn, those who utilize their services.
As a result, there was a near 40% increase in emergency calls for overdoses, according to Hope Partnership Project Coordinator Audrey Barker. As of November, 47 overdose fatalities were reported. In 2016, the previous record, there were 44 deaths.
There were also 448 nonfatal overdoses as of November. Once all the numbers have been collected, Gabis and Barker estimate that the 2020 total will actually be closer to 500 overdoses. In 2019, the number was 438 and in 2018, it was 295.
“What happened is, the people that we’re all servicing, they all became disconnected. That’s a dangerous thing for someone who has substance use disorder.” Gabis said. “Isolation is one of the things that increase the severity of [addiction].”
In response, HPP and its collaborators began to find ways to stay connected to each other and those in recovery through technology. The HPP also worked to connect and educate local agencies on areas like telemedicine, funding opportunities and other available resources.
Barker said that the recent conclusion of a Ross County Community Action campaign aimed at relapse prevention was just one recent component of the HPP’s approach to the pandemic. For several weeks, the nonprofit worked to provide physical and mental health support, personal protective equipment and connection to those in recovery.
She added that the United Way of Ross County’s relaunch of the 2-1-1 resource hotline in February played a pivotal role in keeping people connected to various resources in the community throughout the coronavirus pandemic, too.
“We kept moving forward at a time where it was hard to do that,” Gabis said. “We can’t claim success on this alone. It’s the success of our partners.”
To further its mission, the Hope Partnership Project also pursued recognition as a nonprofit within the state of Ohio during the pandemic and selected a board of directors to keep the organization on track.
Gabis and Barker agree that this was a huge step for the team — which is comprised of members from the various agencies that work the HPP. Even during COVID-19, they were able to come together to address areas of need in the community and fill gaps where services were needed.
Looking to the new year, the Hope Partnership Project hopes to find solutions to provide housing, employment opportunities and transportation to people in recovery. And because of the impacts of the coronavirus, there will also be an emphasis on peer recovery.
“One of the things that we end our meetings on is that we cannot stop, we cannot give up and we cannot slow down. Even though there are other things going on in the world, substance use disorder is not going away,” Gabis said. “It’s getting worse in the current environment and we cannot take our eye off progress.”
For more information about the Hope Partnership Project, please visit https://hopepartnershipproject.com/.
Have a story tip or comment? Contact Toria at tbarnhart@gannett.com or 740-349-1106. Follow her on Twitter @ToriaBarnhart.
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: ‘We cannot give up:’ Hope Partnership Project navigates impact of COVID-19 on recovery