United Communities Against Meth (UCAM) Emily Dalke, Brianne Villarosa, and Bret Sugiyama

What is Meth? White and odorless substance that dissolves in water and alcohol. Can be taken, orally, by injection, by smoking it Street terms for meth are black beauty, blade, chicken feed, chrome, crank and crystal Meth increases the release and blocks the reuptake of dopamine Many physical effects when taking meth (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2009)

Meth Statistics About 90% of the children in the care of the State of Oregon are there because of family drug abuse, with the primary abused drug being Methamphetamine In one Oregon county, 34% of the children removed from meth homes tested positive for Methamphetamine in their systems (OregonMethWatch.org,n.d.)

Prescription Drug Abuse The primary ingredient in meth is pseudoephedrine 20% of the population has used prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons. (National Institutes of Health, 2009). Narcotics, sedatives, tranquilizers, and stimulants are all possible to become addicted to.

Rationale One of the first organizations created was in Riverside, California in They created a Drug-Endangered Children (DEC) program after the death of three children that lived in a meth home. Spokane County in Washington gathered law enforcement, Child Protective Services (CPS), and social service agencies together to work against meth for the better health of the children. (Altshuler, 2005) Objectives of Healthy People 2010 Increase the proportion of adolescents who disapprove of substance abuse. Increase the number of communities using partnership or coalition models to conduct comprehensive substance abuse prevention efforts. (NIDA, 2009)

United Communities Against Meth (UCAM) UCAM is a partnership between Western Oregon University and the Monmouth/Independence YMCA. UCAM provides activities such as an annual community forum, “Nite Court”, and “Operation T-Shirt and Toys.”

Goals and Objectives The goal of UCAM is to educate the public and to provide prevention and treatment programs in order to stop Methamphetamine addiction and abuse.

Objectives Attend the meth forum on October 30th from 6-8 p.m. Take notes so an educational booklet can be developed Collect donations for “Operation T-shirt and Toys.” Chaperone “Nite Court” Create a YouTube video and PowerPoint Develop a press release

Demographics Polk county has 77,074 residents. 23,058 households with about 17,000 children age 5-19 years old. 3.4% of the students used meth in Polk county, and 5.2% used meth in the United States. Risk Factors 49% said drugs were easily available, 50% said friends use drugs, and 51% said their parents attitudes favor drug use (“Drug Prevention Resource,” n.d.)

Knowledge/Service Gap Knowledge gap Treat the meth users by targeting the withdrawal symptoms so that the user can successfully complete treatment and stay clean. Service gap Keep teenage kids away from using meth

“Meth the Next Step Prescription Drugs” 5 th annual forum held on October 30 th, 2009 from 6-8 p.m. at Western Oregon University (WUC, Columbia Room). Keynote speaker was Lincoln County District Attorney Rob Bovett. The purpose of this forum was to educate the community on Methamphetamine and prescription drug abuse in Polk County and throughout the world.

“Nite Court” “ Nite Court” is held every Saturday evening from 8-10 p.m. either at Talmadge Middle School or Pioneer Lanes Bowling Alley Purpose is to provide a meth and prescription drug free environment for middle school students. They provide activities for the kids such as dances, game nights, and bowling.

“Operation T-Shirt and Toys” Fundraiser to collect clothes and toys for children who are removed from their homes and put into foster homes due to meth. Boxes are placed in Dallas, Independence, and Monmouth Donations given to the CASA program

Strengths UCAM is well known in Polk County and each year it has been expanding. UCAM has lots of support Volunteers from Western Oregon University and the community help out with the program.

Limitations No adequate funding Relies mostly on donations It is important to educate the community on how important it is to keep this program running Make UCAM known to everyone in the public so the program can someday receive adequate funding and not die out

Proposed Interventions You Tube Video PowerPoint Press Release Forum Feedback survey

Feedback Survey How did you hear about tonight’s forum (Please circle one)? a. Friend/co-workerb. Flier c. Press released. Other (Please specify): On a scale of one to five (five being the best), how much did you like the forum? Please explain: On a scale of one to five (five being the best), how much did you like the keynote presentation? Please explain: What could be improved for future forums? Do you have any additional comments? Thank you for your feedback!

Liked the Forum (Scale 1-5) 58% rated the forum a 5 38% rated the forum a 4 4% rated the forum a 3 0% rated the forum a 2 or 1

Liked the Keynote Speaker (Scale 1-5) 71% ranked speaker a 5 25% ranked speaker a 4 4% ranked speaker a 3 0% ranked speaker a 2 or 1

Assessment 1. Best way to get the information out to the community was through word of mouth from friends and co-workers 2. Heard about the forum from teachers or the WOU website and s 3. Thought forum was very informative and interesting. 4. Thought Rob was very knowledgeable in the subject and was doing good things for Oregon. 5. More interaction with the presenter and the audience would improve things, also better advertising and not having the forum on a Friday night.

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