West Virginia has developed a prevention infrastructure to implement and support prevention efforts in the state. This infrastructure is funded with federal and state funds and is coordinated through the WVDHHR Bureau for Behavioral Health. The Prevention Infrastructure in West Virginia includes:
- Six regional Prevention Lead Organizations (PLOs)
- County coalitions under the PLOs
- Partnerships for Success (PFS) Coordinators
- SOR Coalition Engagement Specialists
- SOR Adult Suicide Intervention Specialists
- Garrett Lee Smith (GLS) Youth Suicide Intervention Specialists and Prevent Suicide WV
- Expanded School-based Mental Health (solely state-funded)
- SPF-Rx – Help & Hope WV and StigmaFree WV websites
Prevention Lead Organizations are located in six regions throughout the state. These leads have extensive training and experience related to prevention, and coordinate efforts among county coalitions and other specialists. They provide services such as information dissemination, education, alternatives, problem ID and referral, community-based processes, and environmental strategies. They are trained in the Strategic Prevention Framework and have experience using data to guide prevention decisions—from identifying which substance use problems to address in a community, to choosing the most appropriate ways to address these problems, to determining whether selected interventions and strategies are making progress in meeting prevention needs.
West Virginia has a great prevention infrastructure that can help with your prevention efforts. Whenever possible, consult with the regional Prevention Lead Organization to coordinate efforts.
Prevention First Flyer
