Harm Reduction Summit: Addressing the Older Adult Opioid Overdose Crisis

Over the past six years, Baltimore has endured one of America’s deadliest drug epidemics. Black men in their mid-50s to early 70s are experiencing fatal overdoes at a significantly higher rate than any other group. While just 7 percent of Baltimore City’s population, they account for nearly 30 percent of drug fatalities – a death rate 20 times that of the rest of the country. Black men of that age in Baltimore city are more likely to die of substance overdose than from cancer or even Covid-19 at the height of the pandemic.

Join Maryland Philanthropy Network to collaborate with colleagues to learn about harm reduction programs, challenges in implementation, and intervention methods to prevent fatal outcomes.

Shanda Brown, LMSW, Director of Community Life MidAtlantic Region for The Community Builders, and her staff will provide an overview of the successful harm reduction and peer-to-peer initiative at McCulloh Homes. Interim Deputy Mayor John D. Merrill and Sara Whaley, Mayor’s Senior Advisor, will give an update on the opioid restitution funds and their progress with implementation. Dr. Sarah Szanton, Dean of Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, and Dr. Omeid Heidari, University of Washington, will share their substance illness research and clinical applications the Neighborhood Nursing Pilot is bringing to communities like Johnston Square.

Agenda

2:00 — 4:00 PM   |   Speaker Presentations and Discussion

4:00 — 5:00 PM   |   Networking

This event is for Maryland Philanthropy Network members and invited guests only. In-person attendance is highly encouraged.