Breaking the Cycle in Salem County: Substance Use and its Generational Impact

Join us for our April Community Conversation, which explores the broader context of substance use and young parents in Salem County. With a focus on families, this virtual conversation aims to unpack Salem County’s maternal and family health outcomes and substance use among young parents while promoting strength-based protective factors. Featuring a panel with expertise in rural substance use, family and child welfare, and perinatal considerations in South Jersey, this event will provide an overview of substance use and rural health in Salem County and family considerations of substance use and social drivers of health. This conversation will feature stakeholders from across the state of New Jersey, including: Salem Health and Wellness Foundation, Rutgers University School of Social Work, Northeast and Caribbean Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Center, Montclair State University Department of Social Work and Child Advocacy, Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative, and Acenda Integrated Health. These stakeholders are continuously having conversations to address issues of substance use for families in Salem County and beyond.

Dr. Jamey Lister, PhD, MSW, is an Associate Professor at Rutgers University in the School of Social Work. Dr. Lister serves as the Co-Director and New Jersey Director of the SAMHSA-funded Northeast & Caribbean Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Center (NeC-ROTAC) serving HHS Region 2 (NJ, NY, USVI, and PR). Having grown up in a rural community that is also a medically underserved area guides his community-engaged research projects.

Dr. Svetlana Shpiegel is a Professor at the Department of Social Work and Child Advocacy at Montclair University. Her research interests include: adolescents transitioning from foster care, child abuse and neglect, risk and resilience among vulnerable populations, and early pregnancy and parenthood among child-welfare involved youth.