Built by peers, backed by the state: Inside North Carolina's expanding peer support network

The David Folaranmi Foundation works to fight drug abuse and help those suffering from addiction through rehabilitation and education efforts. The Foundation connects patients to local rehabilitation centers for free treatment and therapy services. The Foundation also works to empower individuals to gain practical skills to help them reenter society and the workforce. Since forming in 2017, the Foundation has successfully funded the rehabilitation of 66 individuals.

West Virginia University and Monongalia County's intensive, clinically-integrated harm reduction model and Ohio University and Athens County's community-centered, peer-support program offer two distinct approaches to combating the opioid epidemic in Appalachian communities. Both programs leverage harm reduction practices and have seen significant decreases in overdose deaths.

The youth-led Foundation for Younger Generation gives young people a platform to talk about their mental health with peers and licensed therapists. The group hosts events in-person and online through platforms like WhatsApp and has since reached about 400 people.

ACCESS Open Minds connects youth and young adults to mental health support, including therapists, caseworkers and peer navigators to help them get the care they need. One of ACCESS’s main goals is to bridge the gap between the complexities of the mental health care system and the community. By creating these youth wellness hubs and connecting people with the appropriate services, ACCESS has decreased the number of hospitalizations and emergency room visits and increased the number of people getting mental health care.

The Fulton Community Supervision Center in Missouri provides trauma-informed, gender-specific care and services to women who face the risk of recidivism. Participants live at the center, where they receive services like cognitive behavioral therapy and classes that teach coping mechanisms and personal and professional development. Core to much of the programming is helping women find their self worth.

The National Council for Mental Wellbeing's Mental Health First Aid for Rural Communities trains local residents to recognize mental health warning signs and provide critical support until professional help arrives. The program equips non-medical community members with skills to spot crises, have supportive conversations, and navigate people to appropriate resources. In central New York alone, more than 6,000 people have been trained across 10 rural counties, providing life-saving interventions, particularly in areas where emergency services are hard to access.

To address overdose deaths, multiple organizations across Athens County and Ohio University have implemented free Narcan distribution and training programs since 2023, including overdose response training sessions and no-barrier access to free Narcan kits through campus cabinets, health departments, and community organizations partnered with Ohio's Project DAWN network. The programs have helped distribute hundreds of Narcan boxes and to normalize overdose response training and reduce stigma around addiction.

Over the past several years, Lithuania has implemented a comprehensive national strategy to combat high suicide rates by shifting from a medicalized approach to community-based support. One such strategy is Sidabrinė Linija, or Silver Line, a nonprofit offering free support to isolated seniors by matching them with a “befriender” who shares some of their interests. Since its inception, Silver Line has befriended 6,000 seniors. As a result of combined efforts from multiple initiatives, Lithuania’s suicide rate has dropped from 44 per 100,000 residents in 2004 to 19.5 per 100,000 today.

A mobile diabetes clinic in Calgary brings comprehensive healthcare directly to people experiencing homelessness or low income at community health centers. The team provides services including foot care, retinal scans, blood and urine screening with immediate results, dietary counseling, and connections to housing and mental health programs. The "one-stop-shop" model eliminates the need for patients to travel to multiple appointments, ensuring they get the care they need.

In response to gaps in accessing psychiatric care, Cedar Oaks Clinic developed a team-based mental health care model that provides alternatives to psychiatric hospitalization through same-day crisis services, six-week intensive community programs, and collaborative care involving 30 specialized staff members. The clinic uses a holistic approach where providers from different specialties work together to create individualized treatment plans. So far, the clinic has served 3,000 patients, receiving hundreds of positive reviews.