On September 29, 2023, the SAMHSA Recovery Office celebrated its first birthday. One year ago, during National Recovery Month, SAMHSA officially launched its first Office to promote recovery across the country.
In our first year, we set out to establish ourselves by assembling a team of subject matter experts with lived experience and addressing the following critical issues we heard are important from recovery leaders and allies across the nation:
Inclusion: “Nothing for us without us”
To promote the meaningful participation of a wide range of people with lived experience to improve behavioral health practice and policy and promote the social inclusion of people with behavioral health conditions.
We published a Policy on Inclusion of People with Lived Experience for SAMHSA to model what it looks like to meaningfully participate and engage a variety of people in all aspects of our work. We also convened Regional Recovery Meetings in HHS Regions 3 and 5 to help elevate the voices of people in recovery and their allies in identifying needed solutions. For National Recovery Month, we sponsored a series of webinars and a National Recovery Walk in Washington, DC to raise awareness and celebrate the millions of Americans in recovery.
Equity: “Recovery for All”
Increase recovery opportunities for underserved and underresourced populations and communities, including people of color, youth, older, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+), rural areas, veterans and people with disabilities.
We convened the first tribal recovery summit that brought together over 300 tribal members to identify critical needs and cultural healing practices.
Peer Services: “Peers Helping Peers”
To expand peer-to-peer services in every community.
Working with federal, state, tribal, territorial, and local partners, including peer experts, we published SAMHSA’s National Standard Standards for Peer Support Certification designed to expand and improve the quality of the peer workforce. We also convened a National Peer Summit to provide a forum to bring together people in recovery, family members, youth, states, funders, and others to share ideas and actions to develop peer service delivery.
Social Determinants of Recovery: ‘Whole Health Care’
To address key determinants that support recovery, including access to housing, education, social support and employment.
We updated and released Best Practices for Recovery Housing to improve the quality of recovery housing across the country. We also convened meetings that explored the intersection, coordination and collaboration of Recovery Housing and Housing First approaches and a dialogue meeting on the expansion of Collegiate Recovery programs. We worked with the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the US Departments of Labor and Commerce and others Workplaces ready for restoration.
Wellness: “Individual, Family and Community Wellness”
Expand holistic self-care strategies to improve health and behavioral outcomes—including reducing premature mortality and the impact of chronic health conditions—and to integrate recovery-oriented practices and systemic reform across the full continuum of health care and behavior prevention, harm reduction, treatment, crisis care and recovery support.
We convened a series of educational events during May is Mental Health Month on the importance of family and youth support and a panel of technical experts on family care to create new opportunities to support families and other carers . We also sponsored a dialogue meeting between leaders in psychiatry and people with lived experience to build bridges to promote recovery-oriented therapeutic approaches and a technical expert group on digital innovations to promote recovery to explore the development of online recovery support services .
In addition, we focused on the importance of data and evidence through disclosure Substance use recovery and mental health problems among adults in the United States documenting over 50 million Americans in recovery and the holistic factors that help support recovery. We also convened a panel of technical experts on recovery research to identify current research efforts and gaps that need attention. In the area of trauma, we sponsored a series of trainings for SAMHSA staff and managers on promoting a trauma-informed workplace, and initiated a peer review of crisis respite services and held a technical expert panel to review hot lines operated by peers. Finally, we focused on rights protection, including a meeting to identify strategies for further recovery-oriented criminal justice reforms.
This is a sample of the work and priorities of the Office of Recovery during the first year. As we enter our second year, we are excited to continue to grow and deliver positive results to drive recovery. As we move forward, we look forward to expanding our support and technical assistance to increase access to a comprehensive range of quality recovery support services. This includes our new effort called SPARK – SAMHSA Programs to Advance Recovery Knowledge – which is designed to work with people with lived experience and allies to advance recovery across the country.
Just as people do not recover on their own, the work of the Office of Recovery is supported by every component of SAMHSA along with our federal, state and local partners along with recovery community members and allies.
The Office of Recovery convenes quarterly Recovery Exchange meetings to share our latest work and hear from recovery leaders across the country. To be informed, you can Sign up for announcements about these meetings as well as other Recovery Update e-blast announcements.
Happy 1st birthday to the Office of Recovery — many more to come!
