The Good Neighbor Project is just one of many that have been put on the back burner since the pandemic hit, but it’s making a comeback.
Due to COVID-19, the staff at Custer Health in Mandan were pulled away from programs like this to focus on testing.
But now, every Tuesday in December the organization has set aside time for those already enrolled to meet for education classes, community referrals and to still trade in used syringes for clean ones, which the project is probably best known for.
We spoke with the project coordinator who says they’re receiving more reports of overdoses.
“It is a huge concern to us. So we really are pushing the Naloxone training for all of our participants, whether they themselves use heroin or an opioid or if they have a friend that does. We just want it out there in the community,” said Jennifer Pelster, coordinator for the Good Neighbor Project.
The program is not accepting new participants at the moment but people can still go there and drop off their used syringes.
