UNITE to Face Addiction: "Our AIDS Quilt Moment"

September 29, 2015
Maureen Fitzgerald
Communications Coordinator, ATTC Network Coordinating Office
Editor, NIATx

See you at the mall this Sunday?

That's the National Mall in D.C., of course, for UNITE to Face Addiction!  The ATTC Network will be there--will you?

"...an advocacy movement that's different from anything we've ever done..."
UNITE to Face Addiction

Look for us in tee-shirts with the logo specially designed for this historic event by our talented colleague Mike Wilhelm of the National Rural and Frontier ATTC:

 
And a big thank you to the Central East ATTC for providing the tee shirts!
 
UNITE to Face Addiction brings together a diverse group of people to raise awareness about the impact of addiction. Along with celebrities and some of pop music's favorite performers (Joe Walsh, Steven Tyler, Aloe Blacc, Sheryl Crow, Jason Isbell, the Fray and others), elected officials, and inspirational speakers, more than 75 ATTCers (at last count) will be there to send a unified message and stand up for recovery.

This Could Change Everything

September 2015

Kim Johnson, PhD

Co-Director, ATTC Network Coordinating Office
Deputy Director, NIATx

I started to write this blog post with the “Chinese curse”:  “May you live in interesting times.”

And then found myself spending ten minutes Googling the source of the curse.

You know how that goes, right? You look up something that you think will take 10 seconds, and 10 minutes later you stop yourself from going from link to link to link because the fascinating non-answer to your question leads to more sites with more information. You might never get the straightforward answer to your question, but you get more information on the subject than you ever thought you wanted to know. We live in times where information is abundant, but the process of sorting through it all takes more of our time and energy than we could ever have imagined 25 years ago.

Linking Hispanics and Latinos to Health Care: Promotora Programs

September 15, 2015
Maureen Fitzgerald
Communications Coordinator, ATTC Network
Editor, NIATx

September 15-October 15 2015 marks National Hispanic Heritage Month, first established in 1968 to honor and recognize Hispanics and Latinos and their many contributions to U.S. culture and society.

Among the Latinos making a difference today are groups of Promotores: bilingual, bicultural healthcare workers who receive special training to help their neighbors navigate local social and health services and gain access to education, employment, and healthcare.

Promotoras (women) and promotores (men) are trusted advisors who are welcomed into homes and community centers to talk about reproductive health, nutrition, parenting and how to manage chronic health conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.

Promotora programs are widely used in the states and communities with large Hispanic and Latino populations, and are gaining recognition elsewhere in the U.S.

10 Webinars You Won't Want to Miss: National Recovery Month 2015

September 2015

Maureen Fitzgerald
Communications Coordinator, ATTC Network Coordinating Office
Editor, NIATx
National Recovery Month 2015 celebrates stories of people in recovery, writes Michael Botticelli in this month's feature article in the ATTC Messenger, and September 2015 is packed with activities across the nation sharing the Recovery Month message that treatment and prevention work and people do recover from mental health and substance use disorders.

And as President Obama says in today's  Presidential Proclamation, "This year's theme is "Join the Voices for Recovery: Visible, Vocal, Valuable!"  It encourages us all to do our part to eliminate negative public attitudes associated with substance use disorders and treatment."

The webinar lineup for Recovery Month 20125 offers almost daily opportunities for us to learn about innovations in treatment and recovery as well as ways to change attitudes. Here are just a few (well, 10) that you won't want to miss: