The Pennsylvania departments of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) and Aging (PDA) announced the launch of the new initiative to help lower the number of fatal overdoses in older adults in Pennsylvania – a number that has increased over the past few years.
The agencies are implementing a substance use prevention and wellness program called the Wellness Initiative for Senior Education (WISE) across four counties with some of the highest rates of overdoses for Pennsylvanians 55 and older.
Funding to implement the WISE initiative is provided from the “Big Four” opioid settlement. It led to multiple settlement agreements worth billions of dollars to expand or enhance recovery support services for individuals in recovery from opioid use disorder and other substance use disorders (SUD), most of which goes directly to Pennsylvania counties to meet local needs.
“The WISE program reflects the Shapiro Administration’s shared commitment to health equity, improving health outcomes, and working together to better the lives of Pennsylvania’s older adults,” said DDAP Secretary Dr. Latika Davis-Jones. “Meeting people where they are is a cornerstone of our prevention, treatment, and recovery services. Partnering with local organizations and integrating this initiative into trusted systems already in place is key to providing effective, accessible prevention.”
WISE is a national program that has been operating since 1996 to address the risks specific to older adults related to substance use. It covers a range of topics including stress management, strategies for healthy living, medication management, alcohol use disorder, the aging process, and prescription drugs. WISE uses an interactive approach to help older adults celebrate aging, make positive lifestyle choices, and feel more confident and in control of their lives.
“During the development of Aging Our Way, PA, Pennsylvania’s 10-year strategic plan for aging, we heard directly from older adults, caregivers, and direct care workers about an issue that doesn’t get talked about: behavioral health and substance use challenges among older adults. We heard clearly from older adults that they need more accessible prevention, education, and community-based supports tailored to their unique needs,” said PDA Secretary Jason Kavulich.
How WISE Will Work in PA
- A minimum of two facilitators from each AAA will be trained to administer WISE.
- The counties’ AAA will hold six weekly WISE learning sessions at local senior centers and with older adult groups in their county.
- Each session will be about two hours.
- Participants will be surveyed both before and after each of the six sessions to measure knowledge changes.
“The older adults who are struggling with substance use disorder are often invisible to the systems designed to help,” said Reverend Robert Fuller, a withdrawal management counselor and older adult in recovery. “I am grateful to the Commonwealth for seeing this population, for refusing to leave them behind, and for building something that could reach the person I used to be.”
Older adults who are residents of any of the four pilot counties and interested in enrolling in WISE sessions can do so by contacting the local AAA.
