The opioid crisis in northern Kentucky has often been referred to as an epidemic. According to an article from Spectrum News, Kentucky overdose deaths increased by 53% during the COVID 19 pandemic, which is the second largest increase in the nation.  For several years the Nutrition Education Program (NEP) Senior Assistant from the Kenton County Cooperative Extension Service has been working with people who are seeking treatment from substance use disorders by teaching them the importance of eating healthy and being physically active.  During 2021, the NEP Senior Assistant continued her partnership with the Mary Gandy Travis Recovery Treatment Center (RTC), which is a part of Transitions, Inc.  RTC is a short-term residential treatment center for men and women, where clients receive individual, group, and family education and therapy as well as participate in other recovery-based activities to encourage a life of recovery, health, and wellness.

Because of the ongoing pandemic, RTC opened their dining hall for the NEP Senior Assistant to conduct her classes, so the female residents could spread out and be socially distant from each other.  The COVID guidelines limited the number of participants in the class, so not all the female residents could attend the sessions.  The NEP Senior Assistant went to RTC weekly to teach the Healthy Choices for Every Body curriculum.  During the 7-lesson series, she taught the women about eating healthy, making better food choices on a budget, cooking food safely, planning meals, and cooking a healthy breakfast.  She also gave the participants reinforcements such as cutting mats, mixing bowls, measuring spoons and cups, and colanders, which will help them to cook healthy meals at home after they leave the treatment center.   One of the favorite reinforcement items for the residents was a recipe book that included over 100 easy and healthy recipes from the Healthy Choices for Every Body curriculum and recipes from previous years’ NEP calendars.  Throughout the year, RTC had to periodically close its doors to outside partners because the residents were on quarantine for exposure to COVID.   Nevertheless, twenty women were able to successfully complete the program, while an additional 91 women attended one or more sessions of the series.  Those who graduated from the program were extremely proud to be able to say they had successfully accomplished that goal.

According to the nationally recognized web-based reporting system (WebNEERS), 95% of the women had a positive behavior change in at least one food group during the series. Forty-nine percent increased their food management skills, such as planning meals ahead of time, and checking for sales before shopping, and comparing food prices.  Fifty-five percent of the women increased their amount of physical activity while at RTC.

RTC is currently closed to outside community partners because of a COVID spike, but the NEP Senior Assistant plans to return for more classes as soon as it is safe to do so.  Perhaps she can have a small part in helping the residents survive the opioid epidemic that has plagued their lives during this global pandemic.

                                                                                                     *Masks were not required at this time at RTC.