Executive
Committee
Subcommittee Chairs
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| Who
We Are |
| We are a statewide, nonprofit
association of private sector and tribal entities who provide treatment,
prevention and training services. We are dedicated to ending addiction
by ensuring the development and maintenance of the highest quality
statewide service systems. |
Mission
OPERA’s mission is to eliminate alcohol and drug problems and
their social, health and behavioral consequences through use of evidence-based
practices; partnerships with public and private, social and healthcare
providers; and advocacy for effective budget and public policy. |
Vision
We envision a society in which alcohol and drug problems are recognized
as a public health issue that is both preventable and treatable. We
envision a society in which high quality services for prevention and
treatment of alcohol and drug problems are widely available, and where
prevention and treatment are recognized as specialized fields of expertise. |
| Goals |
- Improve and increase public
and private resources.
- Dedicate a funding stream
for publicly supported services.
- Internal and external promotion
of the highest quality, evidence- based treatment and prevention
services.
- Partnership and linkage
with other social and healthcare institutions to deepen the impact
of prevention and treatment (schools, community health settings,
child welfare etc.)
- Alignment with other vested
parties and institutions to create a political base to support
increased resources, reduction of stigma and the integration of
recovery into the fabric of every community.
- Create a meaningful trade
association infrastructure (communications, membership services
etc.)
- Increase public awareness
of the contribution that treatment and prevention make in creating
healthy communities.
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ADDRESSING
THE CHALLENGES
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| BRIEF
HISTORY |
| The Alcohol & Drug Abuse
Programs Association of Oregon (ADAPAO) has been in existence for
thirty years. Its primary purpose was to bring program and clinical
leadership together to provide technical assistance and support to
each other as the treatment field evolved |
| As time went on, it was apparent
that there was a significant role for the association as advocates
for client needs, evolving practices, and the field as a whole. As
a result, significant relationships were developed with state and
county governments, and with the legislature, in order to meet these
advocacy needs. |
| Under voluntary leadership and
management, the association was an effective leader for the field.
However, as it assumed a more sophisticated role and as external challenges
have increased, it has become apparent that the association was at
a crossroad as an organization: it was no longer able to meet those
needs effectively without significant re-organization and development
of an equally sophisticated infrastructure, including hiring a full-time
Executive Director and shifting its primary focus away from treatment
to include prevention and education. |
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| CHALLENGES
IN THE FIELD |
| Alcohol and drug abuse prevention
and treatment have been given insufficient clinical weight and prominence
in the formulation of health, welfare, and social policy. The direct
result has been a loss of implementation of effective policies and
practices, as well as a stunning loss of funding for prevention, intervention
and treatment programs. |
| Further, the field of substance
abuse has operated part from other forms of health care and social
service delivery. This orientation and practice is fundamentally flawed
and functionally bankrupt. |
| Contributing to this, the Treatment
and Prevention fields have failed to create a meaningful continuum
of services. While Prevention and Treatment are obvious allies, the
structure and function of ADAPAO was not conducive to building on
that potential. Other policy and budget issues have pitted the two
areas against each other, rather than encouraged collaboration. |
| Each system has different constituencies
and political bases. Each has different resources to contribute. Bringing
these two groups together holds great promise. This will only be realized
when we create formal institutional relationships, in which there
is a mutual understand of each industry’s mission, philosophy,
priorities, work culture, etc. Out of this context we will be able
to develop a meaningful partnership, integrate services, and establish
policy and budget that meets the needs of citizens and produces solid
outcomes that will eliminate alcohol and drug problems and their social,
health and behavioral consequences. |
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| RESPONDING
TO THE CHALLENGES |
| Therefore, we have decided to
morph the framework of ADAPAO as a statewide, nonprofit association
of treatment providers into a new association that has the structure
and mission to effectively address these challenges. |
| The new association will incorporate
several key elements that will make it the most effective advocate
in the State of Oregon on prevention and addiction issues and their
solutions: |
- Create a new partnership
between the prevention, education, and treatment fields to work
holistically and with integrated strategies to make deeper and
broader impacts on reducing addition.
- Strengthen a formal link
with county and state governments, including the Department of
Human Services, Office of Mental Health & Addiction Services;
the Governor’s Drug and Alcohol Council; the Association
of Oregon Counties, Mental Health Providers; child welfare; public
safety; Corrections; Oregon Department of Education and other
points of public contact where addiction issues need to be addressed.
- Strengthen links to education
and academia to further our commitment to evidence-based practices,
training, and demonstration of the effectiveness of programs.
- Align with and support the
growing consumer movement to be engaged in eliminating the stigma
attached to addiction, be engaged in prevention activities and
treatment decisions, and engage families.
- Develop more cultural competency
in services for youth and adults in communities throughout Oregon.
- Contribute to building management
information systems that will measure the effectiveness of treatment,
the success of evidence-based practices, the development of new
potential evidence-based practices, and the cost-savings associated
with reducing recidivism and the other negative impacts of addiction.
- Develop a dedicated, stable
funding stream to support publicly funded treatment.
- Provide association services
to its members, including access to information; access to influence;
access to peers for the best policy positions and shared best
practices; and creation of cost-saving benefits for member
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OPERA
is
a statewide, nonprofit association of private sector and tribal
entities who provide treatment, prevention and training services.
We are dedicated to ending addiction by ensuring the development
and maintenance of the highest quality statewide service systems. |
Mission
OPERA’s mission is to eliminate alcohol and drug problems
and their social, health and behavioral consequences through
use of evidence-based practices; partnerships with public and
private, social and healthcare providers; and advocacy for effective
budget and public policy. |
Vision
We envision a society in which alcohol and drug problems are
recognized as a public health issue that is both preventable
and treatable. We envision a society in which high quality services
for prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug problems are
widely available, and where prevention and treatment are recognized
as specialized fields of expertise. |
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