Frequently Asked Questions
General
CORA, or Combating Overdoses in Rural Areas is a nonprofit student organization that aims to provide education on opioid use and overdose response training to rural communities.
We currently have over 40 student members and serve 9 out of the 18 rural counties in Maryland. We have partnered with over 100 MD communities. We also serve Delaware, Pennslyvannia, West Virginia, New York, and Massachusetts.
CORA is an educational organization. During the school year, our members create educational modules/materials on various aspects of the opioid crisis, such as stigma, proper use, local resources, etc. At the end of each semester, we share our educational materials to all of our community partners, so that they can share them with their communities.
During our breaks (Thanksgiving, Winter, Spring, and Summer), students will also travel to communities to present these educational modules and/or give overdose response trainings. This is part of our effort to reduce opioid misuse, opioid addictions, and knowledge of opioid overdose response.
In research CORA conducted, we found that Marylanders in most rural counties correctly answer less than 60% of questions relating to opioids (a failing grade). This statistic has contributed heavily to the opioid epidemic, increasing the risk for opioid misuse and addiction, which can eventually lead to overdose.
By educating rural areas especially, where resources related to opioids are typically scarce, we can prevent further misuse, addiction, and ultimately overdose.
For Community Partners
CORA depends on the help of community leaders to educate their respective communities on the opioid crisis. Typically, communities are less likely to listen to strangers, such as us, especially on such an important topic.
So, we partner with trusted leaders in rural communities. This way, members of the community are more likely to hear and learn about the opioid epidemic. By partnering with you, we can work together to make the largest impact on rural communities.
You can expect the following services from CORA:
1. Access to educational materials on the opioid crisis (approximately 4-6 modules per year)
2. A connection to a national network of rural communities that may be struggling with the opioid epidemic
3. Invitations to overdose response training for members in your community
4. Regular updates on CORA’s progress throughout the year.
Good question. As community partners, we only ask three simple things:
1. Please keep us updated on your community’s needs. We tailor educational materials to your community. For example, if you find that stigma is a large problem in your community, we will develop educational modules that directly address stigma. We may ask for an update from you about twice a year.
2. Please inform members in your community on events that we may hold in your area, such as overdose response trainings or educational seminars. These will occur twice a year.
3. Please share our educational materials with members of your community. This may be in the form of a presentation or webinar for your community. Our educational materials will be designed so that they are easy to understand and present. We want to make education as barrier-free as possible.
As an organization, we are working with the Rural Opioid Technical Assistance, which is a program under the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Additionally, we are advised by professors specializing in opioid abuse in the School of Public Health at the University of Maryland.
Further, we are in the middle of developing a partnership with the Center for Substance Abuse Research at the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University. We are also looking into partnering with physicians to advise and review our materials.
For Students
During the semester, students work together in their action teams to develop educational modules on topics relating to opioids for their respective communities. During breaks, they present these educational modules as seminars, share these modules with community partners, and format them so they are easily adapatable to any other community.
Not only do they help communities in combating the opioid crisis, they are recieving first-hand experience in public health interventions.
Students also have the opportutnity to participate in a multitude of other projects, including those that involve advocacy, overdose response training, and developing new technologies to face the opioid crisis.
Yes! Please contact us at cora.umd@gmail.com to get started.