June 2021 San Benito County Opioid Task Force Updates

SBC Opioid Task Force Newsletter Volume 2- Issue VI - June 2021 | Website

Creating an informed accountable community to decrease opioid use and misuse. SBC OTF is a cross-collaborative community coalition dedicated to preventing substance use and saving lives.

Upcoming Meeting:

July 15, 2021

10:00 - 11:30 am

Our next meeting will be held again via Zoom on June 15, 2021 from 10:00 am to 11:30 am. A calendar reminder the week before will be sent from our AmeriCorps VISTA Marissa Gutierrez at mgutierrez@cosb.us. We look forward to "seeing" you all then.

Updates

Sign-Ups Available for Trauma Informed Webinar Series

We are hosting a trauma informed webinar series with Cypress Resilency Project. They will be on the first Tuesday of the month starting on July 6th at 9 am to 10:30 am. These trainings are very engaging and will be limited in the availability of seats.

Please register at tinyurl.com/otfhealth for the trainings you are interested in. There are a limited number of seats. If spots fill up, a waitlist is created. We ask if you cannot attend to please let us know at least 24 hours in advance to open up to those on the waitlist. We look forward to these upcoming trainings and if you have any questions please contact Marissa Gutierrez mgutierrez@cosb.us for more information.

Click here for the flyer and more info

Local First Responders Use Narcan to Save Lives

We would like to recognize and thank all of our local first responders for their ongoing work to prevent overdose deaths.

On May 18, 2021 San Benito Sheriff Sergeant Uribe and Deputies Avilla & Mull responded to a suspected fentanyl overdose. On June 1, 2021 Hollister Police Sergeant Weiss responded to an overdose situation. In both incidences these first responders successfully administered Narcan. The patients were then medically treated and expected to make full recoveries.

Click here for the full article

or visit the Facebook pages: San Benito County Sheriff and Hollister Police Department for more details

County Supervisors Appoint Eric Taylor as New Sheriff Coroner

Beginning June 26, 2021 through Jan 2, 2023 Captain Eric Taylor will be the acting Sheriff Coroner. The San Benito County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the appointment and numerous community leaders voiced their support. Captain Taylor has been an invaluable key member of the SBC Opioid Task Force since inception in 2017.

“Captain Taylor came to our community with vast experience and leadership,” Hooper states in her letter. “He is a role model for the office. He is respected not only by our sheriff’s office personnel but surrounding departments as well.”

Click here for the full article

Enough Fentanyl to Kill San Francisco:

The new wave of the opioid crisis sweeping California

Deaths from fentanyl overdoses have jumped by more than 2,100% in five years as the powerful drug has flooded the state. Fentanyl is continuing to be the predominant drug causing overdoses in California and in our own county of San Benito.

Here are several articles:

Hollister City Council Names Carlos Reynoso as New Police Chief

After serving as interim Police Chief for a year and a half Carlos Reynoso was unanimously voted to be appointed to Hollister Police Chief.

“It is a great honor to be offered this opportunity to lead this department,” Reynoso said. “I have dedicated my law enforcement career to this department and the members of this department. I believe we have a fantastic group of individuals that do amazing work despite being understaffed and often overworked.”

Click here for the full article

San Benito County Behavioral Health Is Moving

San Benito County Behavioral Health (SBCBH) is moving to 1131 Community Parkway, Hollister, CA 95023. This is located directly behind their old site which was 1131 San Felipe Road , Hollister, CA 95023.

Valley Health Associates, a medication assisted treatment (MAT) provider that SBCBH contracts with, will be starting their mobile clinic in San Benito County at SBCBH's new location beginning July 1, 2021. Individuals seeking this treatment can contact SBC BH at (831) 636-4020 to review options available and to begin the process to get MAT treatment locally.

Gavilan College is Reopening

Gavilan College coming back in person starting July 1 and will be open limited hours or by appointment. Gavilan College has served the community during COVID via Zoom and by providing online courses. With things reaching a new normal, Gavilan is committed more than ever to continue supporting the students and will be offering courses in person as well as online to accommodate the community in this changing world we live in. Fall semester begins August 23, 2021.

Resources

San Benito County Substance Use and Support Services Resource Guide and Pocket Guide

We are happy to share with you the new and improved resource guide. The first version was created back in 2018. With this update all phone numbers and links have been verified along with the entirety of the guide translated into Spanish. Thank you to Public Health staff for helping to translate!

Please Share and distribute this most important resource widely! Thank you all for being a part of these resources to our community, we hope this helps enable those seeking information or support ease of access.

This is a living document, if you have any updates or information you would like to provide please email Veronica Johnson, vjohnson@cosb.us .

Please feel free to print. Please share and distribute widely.

Click here to access these resources

Free Naloxone by Mail Through NEXTDistro Available Online

Free Narcan nasal spray is available to be shipped to an individual directly via an organization called NEXTDistro. A person wanting to access Narcan for free and discretely can do so by visiting the website https://nextdistro.org/catypechoice, watching their short training video, completing the 4 question quiz, and submitting a request form. It takes roughly a week or less to have it mailed once completed. This training and forms are available in both English and Spanish.

If you or your agency, organization, business, etc. would like to have a Narcan Training and free Narcan please reach out to Veronica Johnson vjohnson@cosb.us , Marissa Gutierrez mgutierrez@cosb.us or call 831-637-5367 for scheduling or more details.

If your agency or organization has been trained by us and needs to replenish your supply you can fill out the request form here: https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/individuals/Documents/NDP-Application.pdf

San Benito County Opioid Task Force | Website