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Hello, my name is Amara Matlock
and I am from the Center for Mental Health Services Consumer Affairs Office at the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
I'm here to introduce you to the contents of a toolkit to help you plan
and promote your National Recovery Month activities.
This toolkit is also designed to help you spread the message throughout the year that prevention works,
treatment is effective, and people recover from
mental and substance use disorders. The toolkit is available exclusively online,
and you can download each section as a designed brochure in PDF format
for printing and distribution.
You can find this toolkit by clicking the top-left navigation bar on recoverymonth.gov
where it says "Toolkit."
The "Targeted Outreach" section offers information about prevention, treatment,
and recovery for specific audiences who are affected by mental and/or substance use disorders
or who play an integral role in recovery. These audiences include community leaders
young adults, health care providers, and families and caregivers of young people.
The "Media Outreach" section offers tips to plan and promote your
Recovery Month activities in your community and online. In this section, you'll find templates for an op-ed,
media advisory, press release, fact sheet, proclamation, and sample public service announcement scripts.
The "Resources" section lists national and local prevention, treatment, and recovery organizations,
as well as organizations that you can partner with for your Recovery Month activities.
There's also a feedback form where we encourage you to tell us how you've used these materials.
In this section, you can also find information on how to create and build your social network,
and fast facts on behavioral health conditions.
Included in the "Join the Voices for Recovery" section are vignettes
that describe individuals' personal recovery experience.
You can also click on "Infographics" to view and download a series of infographics
that feature compelling visuals of prevention, treatment, and recovery facts.
You can access these sections using a couple of different ways:
Through the menu on the top-left-hand side of the page.
Or, through the right-hand side of the page in this navigation tree.
Let's start with the "Media Outreach" section.
One of the documents here is titled "Promote Recovery Month with Events". This document
helps you plan and promote both in-person and online events by providing tips
on popular event ideas and online trends.
Use the links at the top to jump to different sections.
Also included in the media outreach section are customizable templates
for writing and distributing media advisories, press releases, and fact sheets.
These easy-to-use items have placeholders for you to insert local information targeted to your specific community.
You can find them in the "Press Materials for your Recovery Month Event" section.
Additional materials will help you draft a proclamation, distribute PSAs, write an op-ed, and work with the media.
Next is the "Targeted Outreach" section with facts about mental and/or
substance use disorders for both general and specific audiences.
First, let's take a look at some general materials that provide an overview of mental
and/or substance use disorders, as well as commonly misused substances and mental health conditions.
These materials can be used to educate people about mental and/or substance
use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery support services.
There is also audience-specific information addressing the 2013 target audiences.
If you click on each of these documents, you will see a page with an overview of key points relevant to that audience.
Last, let's look at the "Resources" section. This section includes federal and state resources,
as well as a list of other community organizations throughout the country available for collaboration
during Recovery Month and beyond. This section will assist you
in developing a system of care in your community for individuals in need of mental
and/or substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery support services.
Featured within the Resources section is the "Mental and Substance Use Disorders:
Fast Facts" piece, a bulleted list of top-line statistics about behavioral health conditions,
prevention, treatment, and recovery.
I'd also like to point out this interactive feedback form. I encourage you to share your
Recovery Month events, experiences, and outcomes after using our materials.
This feedback is necessary to ensure that each section is meeting the needs of our Recovery Month audiences.
So that's it! I am eager to hear all about the successes of your Recovery Month activities.
I also want to hear how you've capitalized on this year's Recovery Month theme, "Join the Voices for Recovery:
Together on Pathways to Wellness" , to better serve the needs of individuals, families, and your overall community.
On behalf of SAMHSA, the Recovery Month Planning Partners, the recovery community, and treatment and service providers,
I thank you for your hard work and continued dedication.
I look forward to celebrating Recovery Month with you this September and all year long!