[virtual, hosted by PTTC Central East}
Nearly 1 in 5 Americans, including over 13% of Central East Region residents, live in rural communities. These residents often face higher rates of drug or alcohol use disorder, fatal overdose, alcohol-induced death, and suicide than their urban counterparts. Yet, rural communities often have less access to substance use prevention and other public health services. To help reduce this gap, the Central East PTTC has created a new Rural Prevention Toolkit for prevention professionals. The Toolkit consists of seven (7) component parts, each designed to support a specific aspect of rural prevention work. This training will review the importance of rural substance use prevention, introduce the toolkit, and walk through how each tool can be used.