2004 Outcomes for the 15th Annual National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month
Join the Voices for Recovery...NOW!
September 2004, which marked the 15th observance of Recovery Month, can be considered the best Recovery Month ever. More events were held this year - and they were better attended - than ever before, and online activity increased, with more people than ever before accessing the Web site. The celebration focused on improving access to recovery among the large number of Americans who have difficulty obtaining treatment for substance use disorders.
The 2004 theme, "Join the Voices for Recovery...NOW!" encouraged everyone to help incorporate community treatment and recovery services as an integral part of the Nation's public health system. The effort also educated the public that addiction is a chronic, but treatable, disease and a public health problem that affects everyone. Of particular importance to a wide range of public and private organizations in the alcohol and drug use disorders treatment field is the Access to Recovery initiative launched by President Bush to help those in need secure the best treatment options available to meet their specific needs.
Outreach Materials and Initiatives
SAMHSA and its planning partners developed a Recovery Month toolkit, a commemorative Recovery Month poster, and a promotional flyer and brochure used in mailings and conference exhibits prior to distribution of the printed toolkits. Additionally, SAMHSA developed two new 2004 radio and television PSAs: "Boat" which demonstrates that all people who suffer from alcohol and drug use disorders, no matter their age, gender, race or class, are "in the same boat," and that treatment helps them to reach solid ground, and "Tony," which illustrates how getting help through treatment can enable a person to help others, thereby multiplying the effect of one person's treatment. A new 2004 Recovery Month Web site, www.recoverymonth.gov, hosted SAMHSA sponsored webcasts, web chats and "Ask the Expert" forums. Visitors were able to download a virtual Recovery Month toolkit, and view the PSAs. People also posted their community forums and events on the site -- a valuable tool for promoting these events to attract both volunteers and attendees. Further details about the Recovery Month Web site are reported in the Interactive Web Based Activities and Information section of this report.
Recovery Month Printed Materials
Building upon the success of the 2003 campaign, SAMHSA and its planning partners worked together to develop a toolkit for local community based organizations to use as a resource for developing and planning Recovery Month events in 2004. To meet the high demand for Recovery Month materials, SAMHSA printed 75,000 toolkits for distribution to various public and private organizations, coalitions, and agencies from a variety of disciplines including the health care, education, business, criminal justice, and government sectors, among others.
The 2004 Recovery Month planning toolkit was a valuable resource to help organizations and government entities plan events that educate the public on substance use disorders and addiction-related issues. It contained a variety of materials that organizations could duplicate directly or tailor to create customized materials and programs for their communities. As in previous years, the toolkit was divided into three sections:
- Media Outreach
- Targeted Outreach
- Resources
Media Outreach
The Media Outreach section offered suggestions on the types of events that community-based organizations could hold to celebrate Recovery Month, and was packed with tips on how to plan and execute successful events that attract local media attention and have a strong impact on the community. Included in this section of the toolkit were sample media materials, including a sample press release, media advisory and op-ed, along with instructions for how organizations could tailor the sample materials or write their own and distribute them to media outlets to encourage media coverage of their events.
Of particular use to event organizers was a new addition to the Media Outreach section of the toolkit in 2004: A tip sheet titled "Speaking Effectively with the Media About Recovery Month," which provided handy tips for event organizers about how to make the most of a media interview. It also included suggestions on key points to convey to media during Recovery Month, so that event organizers in communities across the country presented a uniform message about the national Recovery Month initiative.
Also included in the Media Outreach section of the toolkit were two sample proclamations for national, state, and local officials to use in declaring September as Recovery Month in their jurisdictions. The proclamations were accompanied by instructions on how to secure an official's interest in issuing a Recovery Month proclamation.
Live-read radio public service announcements also were included, and organizations were encouraged to distribute them to local radio stations to give listeners basic information about Recovery Month along with a national toll-free or local number to learn more about treatment services.
To aid event organizers in distributing their outreach materials, the toolkit contained Recovery Month logos and a letterhead template. These items allowed event organizers across the country to further brand their materials as part of the national initiative.
Targeted Outreach
The most in-depth portion of the planning toolkit was the Targeted Outreach section, which contained a wealth of up-to-date and useful information used to educate not only the event organizers, but also the attendees of their events about the nature of substance use disorders and the effectiveness of treatment. This section of the toolkit contained 10 fact sheets that communicated the key themes of the entire Recovery Month initiative, such as the effectiveness of treatment, the need to overcome barriers to accessing treatment, and the value of recovery.
Some of the fact sheets featured general background information, such as a list of the most commonly misused substances, accompanied by up-to-date statistics showing the number of Americans who misuse them. Importantly, the toolkit also contained audience-specific fact sheets with information relevant to key audiences, such as youth. Event organizers could use these fact sheets to target specific audiences through their events and activities. To make the toolkit even more useful, the audience-specific fact sheets featured a list of steps each audience could take to make a difference.
The 2004 toolkit also featured vignettes-personal stories of recovery told by the people who live it every day and the people who support them. Their unique stories were meant to be shared with others on their way to recovery as an inspiration and to relay the positive way they have reclaimed their lives.
Resources
The Resources section of the 2004 planning toolkit served two purposes:
To list a wide spectrum of organizations that may be helpful to Recovery Month event organizers, such as a list of Planning Partners participating in the Recovery Month celebration, so that event organizers could contact other organizations to coordinate efforts.
To provide resources for individuals seeking addiction treatment and other information about substance use disorders. A Single-State Agency list was provided, as well as a comprehensive resource brochure complete with descriptions of each organization. Listings in the brochure were organized by category to make it easy to find a particular organization.
Supplemental Materials
SAMHSA also designed and produced 10,000 color 35" x 50" commemorative Recovery Month posters, 10,000 color 8.5" x 11" announcement flyers, and 10,000 3 ¾" x 9" teaser brochures for use in mailings and conference exhibits prior to release of the printed kits. Seventy-five thousand Web flyers were also produced and distributed with the toolkits to increase awareness of Recovery Month activities and the availability of materials.
Section/Topic |
Number of pages |
| Signed Support Letters
|
| HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson
| 1 |
| ONDCP Director John Walters
| 1 |
| SAMHSA Administrator Charles G. Curie
and CSAT Director Dr. H. Westley Clark
| 1 |
| Web Promotional Flyer
| 1 |
| Media Outreach Materials
|
| Media Tips: Speaking Effectively with the Media About Recovery Month
| 2 |
| Promotional Event Ideas
| 6 |
| Sample Press Release
| 5 |
| Sample Media Advisory
| 4 |
| Sample Op-Ed
| 3 |
| Radio Public Service Announcements (live-read announcer scripts)
| 2 |
| Sample Proclamations
| 4 |
| Logo Sheet
| 1 |
| Letterhead
| 1 |
| Targeted Outreach Materials
|
| Overview: Access to Recovery
| 3 |
| Overview: Alcohol and Drug Use Disorders in Our Society
| 3 |
| Overview: The National Investment in Treating Alcohol and Drug Use Disorder
| 2 |
| Overview: Commonly Misused Substances
| 10 |
| Overview: Join the Voices of Recovery
| 6 |
| Youth and Alcohol and Drug Use Disorders: How Adults Can Help
| 10 |
| Alcohol and Drug Use Disorders and the Workplace
| 8 |
| Health Care Providers: Helping Your Patients Join the Voices for Recovery
| 9 |
| Mobilizing the Recovery Community: Using Your Experience to Spread the Word
| 6 |
| Supporting and Integrating Systems of Care: Maximizing Their Impact on Improving Access to Treatment for People with Alcohol and Drug Use Disorders
| 15 |
A Partial Distribution List for the Recovery Month 2004 Kits
Addiction Technology Transfer Centers
Advocates for Recovery Through Medicine
Alcohol and Drug Council of North Carolina
American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy
American Bar Association, Standing Committee on Substance Abuse
American Psychological Association
Association of Persons Affected by Addiction
Behavioral Health Services
Californian's for Drug-Free Youth/Teen Challenge
Catholic Charities
Child Welfare League of America
Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America
Compass Center
Congress
Criminal Justice Grantees
Drug Education Council
Drug Free Businesses Houston
East County Center for Change
Eastside Catholic Center and Shelter
Faces and Voices of Recovery
Four Corners Community Behavioral Health
Great Lakes ATTC
Holly Hill Hospital
Hope Networks
Iowa Substance Abuse Program Directors Association
Join Together
Lutheran Social Services of Illinois
MARRCH
Minnesota Supreme Court
Mississippi Center for Mental Health
Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery
Municipal Channel
Narcotics Anonymous
National Asian Pacific Families Against Substance Abuse
National Association for Children of Alcoholics
National Association of Drug Court Professionals National Association of Governors
National Association of Mental Health
National Association of Social Workers
National Council for County Behavioral Healthcare Directors
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence
National League of Cities
New Millennium
Philadelphia Corporation for Aging
Planning Partners
SAMHSA Grantees
Silhouette Events
Single State Agencies
State Associations of Addiction Services
Tarzana Treatment Centers
Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities
The Association of Halfway Houses Alcoholism Programs of North America, Inc.
U.S. Department of Transportation - DWI/Drug Courts
U.S. Conference of Mayors
