The Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin at Madison will host a webinar on February 19, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. CT to discuss ways that a father’s health and behaviors impact their children’s well-being. Researchers will present findings about fathers’ experiences in prenatal and pediatric care settings and strategies for promoting fathers’ physical and mental health; also presented will be findings on how to support fathers in modeling positive health behaviors for their children.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has announced a competitive grant opportunity under the Opioid-Impacted Family Support Program. Up to 19 grant awards will be funded to support training programs that expand paraprofessionals’ knowledge, skills, and expertise, and to increase the number of peer support specialists and other behavioral health-related paraprofessionals who serve children whose parents are impacted by opioid use disorders and other substance use disorders, as well as family members in guardianship roles. Applications are due by April 13.

This report examines county-wide approaches for addressing substance use among high school age youth. Approximately 30 percent of high school students report using alcohol, 20 percent of youth report binge drinking, 20 percent report marijuana use, and nearly 12 percent of high school students report using illicit or injectable drugs. The report notes that while overall alcohol, tobacco, and drug use have decreased among youth, the complexity of substance abuse requires increased emphasis on prevention, intervention, and treatment strategies at the county level.

This Child Trends report evaluates Nebraska’s Bridge to Independence (b2i) program for young adults who have recently exited from the foster care system. The program offers supportive services such as medical care, housing, and case management and assists participants as they attain education and employment in coordination with an assigned independence coordinator. This report’s assessment of qualitative and quantitative impacts of b2i are incorporated as part of the Nebraska Children’s Commission 2018-2019 Annual Report and will be used to set future priorities on the b2i program expansion.

This Mathematica report evaluates methods of substance abuse treatment and mental health service delivery and assesses the measurement of opioid misuse. The report also offers economic and epidemiologic tools to improve recognition of unintended consequences and long-term implications of interventions previously used to reduce opioid use.

This brief from the University of California at Davis, Center for Poverty Research highlights how childhood economic hardship has negative long-term impacts on mental and physical well-being and how resilience factors can mitigate these negative consequences. The brief notes recent research that identifies protective factors, such as supportive relationships and successful role models, that provide continuous benefits for child development. The brief also offers suggestions for both policy and practice to support youth experiencing economic hardship at an early age.

The National Association of Counties will host the second of a two-part webinar on December 5, 2019 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. ET to review the collection, management, and sharing of data among health and human services and justice systems to address incarcerated persons with mental illness. Subject matter experts from county health and human services and justice systems at the local level will discuss how they implemented data policies and systems and the ways this data has been used to connect people to related supportive services and treatment programs.