COMMUNITY IMPACT

Community Outreach and Education

It is AHSC’s goal to work toward better communication and education within the community to promote Methadone and other approved medications as recognized and accepted treatment modalities for those who suffer from opiate dependence. AHSC is involved in various outreach programs and attends a variety of stakeholders’ meetings.

1. The Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN), Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services, is a program that provides employment-related services to CalWORKs participants to help them find employment, stay employed, and move on to higher paying jobs, which will ultimately lead to self-sufficiency and independence. CalWORKs participants receive GAIN services through GAIN Regional offices.

AHSC staff participates in a monthly outreach at the El Monte GAIN general relief program  “Pathways to Success” for young adults, age 18-25.

2. East Valley Community Health Center, Inc. (East Valley) has evolved from a free clinic that focused on family planning and counseling services into a comprehensive health care provider and, since 2002, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). In 2010, East Valley provided 97,701 medical visits to 32,161 individuals. East Valley also serves an additional 20,000 people every year with outreach, education, and prevention services. AHSC partners with East Valley for weekly HIV testing that is conducted every other Thursday. East Valley comes into our East Los Angeles, Pico Rivera, methadone clinic to provide testing and education services, and these services will soon become available at our Azusa clinic.

3. AHSC participates in the yearly Mental Health Summit with Long Beach Mental Health Department, providing methadone education brochures and referral information.

4. AHSC participates in a yearly Homeless Help Fair with South Bay Coalition for the Homeless.

5. The mission of the LA County HIV Drug and Alcohol Task Force is to advocate for the needs of drug and alcohol users and people in recovery who are at risk for or living with HIV/AIDS and/or Hepatitis C. AHSC’s Cindy Cortez, Outpatient Services Coordinator, is appointed to the Los Angeles County Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Drug and Alcohol Task Force, Planning Committee. Training for HIV and substance abuse are provided for community providers as part of meeting their continuing education requirements.

[From the 2011/2012 Annual Report published by Rebecca Lira, Director of Substance Abuse Treatment Services.]