September RRCC Meeting Minutes

by | Sep 10, 2025 | Prevention, Recovery Ready Community | 0 comments

September Recovery Ready Communities Collaborative (RRCC) – Meeting Minutes 

Thank you to all who attended our 2025-2026 kickoff meeting! You are the reason we are able to continue this important work in the Greater Manchester region. 

View the meeting PowerPoint here

What’s New 

  • The collaborative was renamed to the Recovery Ready Communities Collaborative (RRCC) to reduce redundancy or confusion because many groups have similar names to our old one (i.e., continuum of care meetings).
  • The collaborative’s purpose statement was trimmed down and made a bit broader so we can support more work that providers across the continuum of care do.
  • NEW Purpose Statement: The Recovery Ready Communities Collaborative works to build and enhance substance use prevention in the Greater Manchester region by breaking down the silos in prevention, treatment, and recovery.
  • To increase availability and transparency with the collaborative, meeting agendas and minutes can now be found on our website so everything is in one place, and available to the public.
  • If you are on the email list – you will still get collaborative-related emails, but meeting minutes will just have a link to the website now included.
  • The collaborative will still have featured speakers, but will not be every single month.
  • We want to be responsive to your needs, so let us know if you want to hear from a specific person/organization and we will do our best to weave it into the meeting!

What to expect for 2025-2026:

  • Featured speakers from our community
  • Actionable strategies to address substance use & work together more effectively across the continuum of care
  • Professional development opportunities
  • A more solution-oriented approach to substance use prevention in the region

Action Plan 

  • Group discussion: “What does a ‘recovery ready community’ mean to you?”  
  • Group discussion: “What can we do to be a more ‘recovery ready community’?” 
  • Come to our October meeting to learn more about our strategic plan and activities to reach these goals! 

Overdose Prevention Updates: June-August 

  • Outreach teams are currently handing out wound care kits, waters, socks, and other basic necessities during their rounds. 
  • The focus is engaging with folks about how they’re doing, physical health/safety, and talking about treatment/goals. 
  • Only one overdose death this past June/July, versus the historical 8-9 fatalities per summer that each year usually has. 
  • Overdose calls used to be about 50%/50% housed vs unhoused folks but now it’s more like 10%/90% housed vs unhoused. 
  • Still unsure why this is happening – if you have any ideas, let Andrew know! 
  • This trend is not happening in Nashua- they’re seeing a tiny shift but nothing like we are seeing here in Manchester. 
  • Overdoses, deaths and overdose calls have been declining for the past 3 years steadily. 
  • Crack cocaine use is way up in Manchester, compared to previous years. 
  • Any questions or concerns about Overdose Prevention data, please reach out to Andrew Warner: [email protected].

Treatment Updates 

  • Farnum is now closed and with them went the respite system in NH. 
  • Respite care is temporary safe housing for individuals looking for treatment and waiting for a bed, that way they don’t have to wait in unsafe situations or out on the street until a space opens up. 
  • This summer was the first time in 5 years there is a waitlist for beds for treatment during the summertime.  
  • So far, no one is jumping to pick up the respite contract through BDAS. 
  • The Doorway is now at 300 Hanover St. and being run by Elliot Hopsital. They have been very engaged and really working to break down barriers that were problems in the past! 

General Updates/Information 

  • There is a group that meets on the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) and there is a distinct increase in stimulants being prescribed in the region. 
  • Prescribers/doctors can request reports to understand the prescription rates and specific doctors that are prescribing in the area. 
  • If you work with doctors, you can collect more information on the picture of prescription drug use through the PDMP. 

What’s Next 

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, October 14th, 10am-11am, at the Makin’ It Happen office (77 Sundial Ave, Suite 102W, in Manchester). 

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