The Hernando County Community Anti-Drug Coalition (HCCADC) represents Hernando County, Florida, located on the central-west coast 45 miles north of Tampa. The coalition was originally formed as a task force through Hernando Schools in 2003 in response to the 2002 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey results, where Hernando County youth had the highest prevalence of use in almost every drug categor
y compared to every other county in Florida. At the time a Hernando Schools Social Worker attended the 2003 Prevention Conference and heard the results and returned to the county informing the School District that Hernando was in a state of crisis. She knew it was time to do something and started the task force. By 2004 it was decided that the coalition needed to be its own entity as the alcohol and drug use rates by youth (for example, 59.7% of middle and high school students reported alcohol use) needed more attention than the task force could provide. The coalition incorporated on November 4, 2004. From that point to 2008 the coalition began meeting, developed a Board of Directors and worked on substance abuse education in the community. It wasn’t until 2008, when the coalition was awarded the Drug Free Communities grant, after demonstrating that the county was experiencing high rates of underage alcohol and other drug use, that the coalition began focusing on implementing strategies in the community rather than just information dissemination and education. Shortly after the DFC award, the coalition was funded through the Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant (SPF/SIG), in the State of Florida known as the Substance Abuse Response Guide (SARG) grant. SARG is a data-driven process that utilizes a needs and capacity assessment to allow you to target local resources and maximize impact on the problems related to substance use. After learning the 5 steps of the SPF and understanding how contributing factors relate to alcohol and other drug use, the coalition worked hard to gain community support and implement environmental strategies in Hernando County. The HCCADC is committed to reducing the problems of drug abuse, addiction, and related social issues in Hernando County in order to create a safe, healthy, and drug free community. Substance abuse is an issue that complicates the lives of many. In fact, there are few, if any families who have not been touched or who do not know someone who has been touched by the negative effects of substance use and abuse. Yet, these problems remain almost a forbidden or “taboo” topic of objective discussion. A rational community response is hampered by our collective difficulty in viewing the issue comprehensively through data, a step required to realize the full scope and impact of the intemperate use of alcohol and other drugs.
