Desert Messenger

February 5, 2020 www.DesertMessenger.com 5 Art Guild updates Quartzsite Art Guild welcomes ev- eryone to attend our meetings. Quartzsite Art Guild is located at the Senior Center 40 Moon Mountain Ave. Quartzsite. Meetings start at 6 p.m. every fi rst and third Thursday of the month. $5.00 membership to join plus $5 to the Senior Center, total of $10. For more information, call Oney Budge 208-317-2315. Free Mobile Clinic Thurs. Feb. 6 Call Don 208-255-6955 Don's Rocks Decorative Landscaping Hauling, Dumptruck & Backhoe Services WE'RE BACK! Looking forward to seeing our Friends! Not a licensed contractor Centerpoint for Hope-Mobilize AZ free mobile clinic coming to Quartzsite, Arizona on Thursday, February 6 Information and connections to local substance use resources, screenings for HIV and Hepatitis C, naloxone, and more available to the public. The Centerpoint for Hope-Mobi- lize AZ free mobile clinic will visit Quartzsite, Arizona, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, February 6, 2020. The clinic will take place at the Quartzsite Food Bank, 40 N. Moon Mountain Ave., Quartzsite, AZ 85359. The mobile clinic is the result of a groundbreaking partnership between Crisis Response Network's Center- point for Hope and Mobilize AZ, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Arizona's public health movement. The free mobile clinic travels across Arizona to bring resources to people strug- gling with opioid and substance use. The mobile clinic provides a variety of services to deliver individualized support, promote recovery, and re- duce overdoses: • Screening and connection to com- munity resources • Health testing (e.g., HIV and Hep- atitis C) • Information about and connection to substance use resources by peer support specialists • Confi dential substance use assess- ment and referral to services, in- cluding opioid treatment services, and initiation of Medication Assist- ed Treatment (MAT) • Free Naloxone (opioid overdose reversal medication) "By combining Mobilize AZ resourc- es with Centerpoint for Hope's prov- en emergency response platform, we are piloting a new way to respond to the opioid epidemic and becoming a model for other states to emulate in their fi ght against addiction," notes Dr. Christine Bracamonte Wiggs, Director of Community Health In- terventions & Health Equity at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona. The health screenings and harm reduction support are provided by Sonoran Prevention Works staff. Community Medical Services (CMS) leads MAT engagement and serves as a conduit to local MAT providers for people who would like to start treatment. To view a list of sched- uled clinic locations, please visit: centerpointforhope.org/mobilize- az-clinic-schedule. Centerpoint for Hope, a program of Crisis Response Network, is a non-profi t organization dedicated to working in partnership with fi rst responders, local communities, gov- ernment and health service provid- ers to support disaster readiness, response and recovery services to communities. "We are proud to work with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona in sup- port of their Mobilize AZ initiative to help combat the opioid epidemic in our state. The mobile clinics are not a one-and-done visit, they help con- nect residents with local resources and we follow up with individuals to monitor their progress," says Justin Chase, President and CEO of Crisis Response Network. Mobile outreach services are pro- vided via the Centerpoint for Hope Tragedy Response Vehicle (TRV), which is a customized mobile coor- dination center (for fi rst respond- ers or others) that features satellite connection, Wi-Fi internet hotspot, cell phone and computer charging stations, private meeting areas and more. With an onboard generator, the TRV can operate for 72 hours without additional support to serve as a vessel of care to allow behav- ioral health services, resource navi- gation, or basic public health func- tions to be facilitated anywhere. Centerpoint has staff trained in emergency management and the TRV is on-call for statewide deploy- ment which can be coordinated through Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), Com- munity Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD), state and county emergency management, and pub- lic safety agencies. Centerpoint can also be contacted directly. Centerpoint is available for other organizations to utilize and contract for on-call capabilities for their own incident response plans and other "blue sky" (non-emergency) proj- ects such as employee assistance and wellness programs, organiza- tional trainings, as a mobile com- mand post, etc. Read Desert MESSENGER ONLINE @ DesertMessengerOnline.com

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