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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Carol P Meredith, MPA, CT Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services, 410 Capitol Avenue, MS14PIT, Hartford, CT 06134, 860-418-6826, carol.meredith@po.state.ct.us
In Connecticut a wide variation of prevention programs and practices exists among state and local planners, practitioners and policy makers. This underscores the need for an integrated framework and philosophy for prevention within the state. In recent years, federal funders have adopted models that demand comprehensive planning and collaboration of prevention efforts. One such effort, the State Incentive Grant (SIG) was received by Connecticut from the federal Center for Substance Abuse Prevention in 1998. In addition to providing funding for local prevention efforts, the SIG was expected to stimulate changes at both the state agency and local levels with respect to how prevention services were coordinated and funded.
Connecticut's SIG involves eight state agencies with prevention funding, responsibilities and mandates. These eight agencies set out to streamline the prevention system to plan, fund and evaluate prevention efforts across state agencies. System change efforts were evaluated through a pre-post comparison of the level and nature of interactions among the eight state agencies.
This paper will capture, amplify and synthesize Connecticut's efforts at changing it's prevention system, including reviewing the model of the system prior to the SIG; the collaboration activities and accomplishments; the evaluation tool, process and preliminary results; and, future plans and directions, desired outcomes and impacts of the system's change on the target populations. The paper is intended to provide information on the lessons learned and how to apply these lessons to advance the common goal of preventing negative health and social consequences.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: System Involvement, Coordination
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: State of Connecticut agencies including the departmens of: Public Health, Mental Health & Addiction Services, Children & Families, Education, Social Services, and, Transportation, as well as the Governor's Office, the Office of Policy and Management and t
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.