Employment as Prevention: A Public Health Response to the Overdose Crisis
This podcast is a discussion between two subject matter experts who highlight how employment and businesses can address workforce challenges related to the opioid crisis and potential strategies for RETAIN state teams to consider in helping support employers and participants who may be impacted by substance use disorder. Amanda Latimore, PhD, Director of the Center for Addiction Research and Effective Solutions (CARES) at the American institutes for Research and Ashley Shaw, MBA, Director of Creating Opportunities for Recovery Employment (CORE) at Marshall Health in West Virginia, provide a research and program services perspective on areas that include myths regarding hiring people in recovery, the return on investment for employers, the experiences and challenges of individuals with lived experiences wishing to stay in or return to the workforce and considerations for supporting recovery friendly workplaces.
Subject Matter Expert: Amanda Latimore, Ph.D, MA and Ashley Shaw, MS, MBA,
Moderator: GeMar Neloms, American Institutes for Research
Approximate Run Time: 35 minutes
Speaker bios:
Amanda Latimore, Ph.D, MA is an epidemiologist with more than a decade of experience using research to inform behavioral health policies, practice and programs. Dr. Latimore is the Director of Center for Addiction Research and Effective Solutions (CARES), where she manages a multidisciplinary team carrying out a portfolio of work related to behavioral health, with a focus on addiction and addressing the needs of those impacted by addiction through the social determinants of health. She draws on nearly a decade of experiences providing guidance to community-based programs and city- and state-level public officials from across the US on data and behavioral health. One such project involved working with the Chamber of Commerce in West Virginia, where she conducted in-depth interviews and focus groups with small and large businesses to inform policies and programs related to the employment of people in recovery. Dr. Latimore is also Adjunct Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she continues to teach social epidemiology and elevates the importance of the social determinants of addiction.
Ashley Shaw, MS, MBA, is CORE (Creating Opportunities for Recovery Employment) Director with Marshall Health within the division of Addiction Sciences. In this capacity, Ashley serves as the primary program liaison for CORE’s 12-county regional infrastructure purposed to provide workforce development training and job placement assistance to individuals in recovery. Ashley has 10 years of professional experience in workforce development program oversight working extensively with non-profit organizations in creating career skills training programs, building collaborative community partnerships, and assisting individuals in obtaining competitive employment opportunities. Additionally, Ashley has taught in both public schools and post-secondary education institutions. She has a Bachelor’s degree in English with a concentration in secondary education, a master’s degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resources. Above all, Ashley’s desire is to assist individuals is gaining the knowledge and skills needed to lead happy, fulfilled, and self-sustained lives.
This resource was prepared for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Disability Employment Policy and Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN) state grantees, by the American Institutes for Research under DOL Contract Number 1605DC-18-F-00429. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the U.S. Department of Labor, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement of same by the U.S. Government.