NAADAC Congressional Briefing, Washington, D.C.
November 13, 2018
Today the National Association for Alcohol and Drug Addiction Counselors (NAADAC) is
briefing Congressional offices about state-or-the-art best practices for addressing the
opioid crisis and substance abuse across the country. Local drug treatment leader
Thomas Gorham, Executive Director of Options Recovery Services, will describe
Options’ Offender Mentor Certification Program (OMCP), an in-prison program in three
California prisons where inmates are taught to address their own addiction and to
counsel their peers to achieve and maintain sobriety. The program began in 2009 at
Solano State Prison, modeled on Options earlier Addiction Counselor Training (ACT) at
San Quentin State Prison. The OMCP and ACT programs have graduated over 300
inmates who have qualified for full CCAPP (California Consortium of Addiction Programs
and Professionals) or CAADE (California Association of Drug and Alcohol Educators)
Certification. The certified peer counselors then provide substance abuse training and
counseling at prisons and prison reception centers throughout the state. Upon parole,
many graduates go on to become addiction counselors at non-profits and government
programs addressing addiction.
Tom Gorham, LMFT, CADC II, helped found the ACT program at San Quentin, and has
been instrumental in establishing and growing the OMCP program. In addition to
serving as Executive Director of Options Recovery Services, he teaches at the University
of California Extension Services Certificate Program in Alcohol and Drug Abuse Studies,
and has taught numerous in-prison classes for the ACT and OMCP programs. Today he
will apprise Congress on this unique approach to addressing the nation’s opioid
epidemic.
Links – https://www.facebook.com/optionsrecoveryservices/posts/2363262740573077