ODESSA, Texas —
A recent PSA campaign from the Ad Council will be focusing on the stories of hope and recovery from people affected by substance use disorder.
“So substance use disorder is a treatable chronic illness and what some people may heard before is substance abuse," said Kirsten Seckler, Chief Communications Officer for Shatterproof. "We want people to understand that this is a disease and it’s treatable. And it’s really recurring use of alcohol or drugs.”
But what’s it like trying to get treatment for substance use here in West Texas?
“What the data has shown is that we have actually done less treatment. There has been a drop in treatment numbers within the last couple of years and what we’ve found is that this is not because there’s less substance use to treat, it’s because we have a loss of care providers within the area. So not only did we start with a shortage but many of the providers have moved out of the area,” said Jennifer Weston, Data Coordinator for the Permian Basin Regional Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse.
But despite there being fewer providers for substance use care in West Texas, Weston says that another form of care is on the rise.
One that can help treat things like substance use disorder alongside normal substance use treatment.
“I think that we need more mental healthcare providers and substance use providers," Weston added. "We’ve seen an increase in mental health care providers, which is wonderful. So we need more LCDCs, which are the licensed chemical dependency counselors and that would help tremendously.”
Weston also says that education is important as well and starting to teach kids at a young age about the dangers of substance abuse can go a long way in preventing potential future cases.