Lowell

The City of Lowell Health Department created the Substance Abuse and Prevention Division in 2017 to house staff dedicated to addressing substance misuse prevention. The Division has expanded greatly since its development, and currently has staff focusing on all parts of the prevention continuum. The Substance Abuse and Prevention Division houses several of Lowell’s prevention programs:

• Lowell Community Opioid Outreach Program (CO-OP): 978-631-7240
• Massachusetts Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaboration (MOAPC): 978-674-1065
• Partnerships For Success (PFS): 978-674-1064
• Syringe Collection Program: 978-674-1049
• Unwanted Medication and Sharps Disposal Days: 978-674-4304

For more information about the Lowell Health Department or the Substance Abuse and Prevention Division, call or visit:

• City of Lowell Health Department, Substance Abuse & Prevention Division: 978-674-4304
• City of Lowell Health Department: 978-674-4010

The Substance Abuse and Prevention Division staff take a collaborative approach to meet their goals by working with a wide network of health, medical, safety, and educational organizations throughout Lowell and the Greater Lowell. Below are highlights of the work that they are doing, often working alongside community partners:

• Provide credible and accurate information regarding initiatives and efforts to address Substance Use Disorder (SUD) in the City.
• Connect individuals with SUD and families with treatment options and support and recovery resources.
• Provide outreach education to schools, youth and family serving agencies, and community organizations.
• Work to ensure there are adequate treatment options available to meet the needs of the community.
• Promote a deeper understanding of SUD as a disease.
• Work to effect changes to social norms around SUD.
• Provide proper disposal options for unwanted medications and sharps (needles, lancets, EpiPens).
• Implement prevention efforts to reduce the non-medical use of prescription medication.
• Collaborate with community agencies to promote and implement prevention and harm reduction efforts.
• Strengthen knowledge of local substance abuse, mental health, medical, supportive, and recovery resources.
• Create a social media youth meme campaign focused on educating youth on the nonmedical use of prescription drugs.

Youth Meme Campaign 2020

The Partnerships for Success (PFS) grant was awarded to the Lowell Health Department in 2015 from the MA Department of Public Health. This grant focuses on educating the community on the prevention of the non-medical use of prescription medication. The Youth Meme Campaign was created to touch upon this subject in a fun way!

These memes can help youth to start a conversation about saying “no” when faced with misusing prescription drugs. This conversation can sometimes be uncomfortable, so we wanted to provide an opportunity to start a dialogue in a lighthearted way. Youth in our community should not feel guilty refusing drugs; saying “no” to prescription drug misuse should be normal. Share these memes with your friends and family to start the conversation on a lighter note. And remember:

Check out and share the PFS Youth Meme Campaign images found below along with the #RiseAboveLowellMA!