UPS Partners with RU Behavioral Health to Address Opioid Crisis

This September, Rutgers University Behavioral Healthcare launched the Middlesex Outreach for Recovery & Education (MORE) program. The community-based outreach intervention program funded by Middlesex County will target individuals diagnosed with opioid use and substance use disorders throughout Middlesex County, New Jersey.  University Procurement Services handled the purchase of the Ford van in March 2021 and its conversion into its current Mobile Recovery Unit. 

The Mobile Recovery Unit aims to meet patients wherever they are — in homes, parks, trailer parks, soup kitchens, train stations, food pantries, abandoned buildings, or houses of worship. The van, pictured below, will staff a part-time licensed practical nurse, a full-time community outreach worker, and a part-time peer navigator to provide non-facility interventions to those who are unable or unwilling to access support from traditional service providers.

The Mobile Recovery Unit will target individuals affected by opioid use disorder with a subcategorization of individuals with past and active medical conditions including psychiatric problems, HIV/AIDS, and alcohol use. Staff will offer opioid overdose prevention and ambulatory withdrawal management training, as well as a personalized assessment and plan for each client’s needs to sustain long-term recovery, including referrals to appropriate recovery centers, social services, housing/shelter centers, and/or legal services.

This outreach program will serve as a low barrier entry into the Middlesex County continuum of care that will include Medication Assisted Therapy. Utilizing non-threatening and non-judgmental engagement strategies, staff will work to establish a trusting relationship with individuals — many of whom are also struggling with mental health issues — with the ultimate goal of providing education, resources, and support to help support these individuals’ recovery.

Staff will also distribute risk reduction kits and care packs including blankets, warm clothing, water, hygiene supplies, and food staples as needed.

MORE will operate five days a week, as well as one Saturday and one Sunday each month. Target locations include New Brunswick and Perth Amboy, the two urban areas in the county with the largest unsheltered homeless populations.