Congratulations to the Drug Free Cecil Youth Coalition for winning the 2025 Dose of Prevention Challenge for their comprehensive, youth-led approach to medication misuse prevention across Cecil County! The Dose of Prevention Challenge encourages coalitions to educate their communities about the dangers of prescription drug misuse and over-the-counter cough medicine abuse and is a joint partnership between CADCA and the Consumer Healthcare Products Association’s Stop Medicine Abuse campaign.
Throughout October, in observance of National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month, the Drug Free Cecil Youth Coalition combined community outreach, direct education, and safe disposal efforts to address both prescription and over-the-counter cough medication misuse.
The coalition mobilized 10 schools across Cecil County to educate students through student-led, adult-guided prevention clubs. Youth leaders educated 206 students on what opioids are, their medical use, and the dangers of addiction and the short- and long-term effects of misuse.
Youth-led prevention campaigns expanded the reach through PSAs, posters, and billboards developed during the Youth Leadership Summit. Two billboards focused specifically on medicine misuse and generated a combined average of more than 814,000 impressions. Prevention posters addressing medicine misuse were displayed in all 28 public schools, with five posters per school reaching more than 108,000 impressions countywide.
The coalition also emphasized safe use and disposal. At an October Train-the-Trainers event, eight students were certified as Johnson & Johnson OTC Medicine Safety trainers, equipping them to teach their peers about proper use, storage, labeling, and disposal of medications. Later in the month, the 9th annual Spooktacular Trunk or Treat and Drug Take Back Event drew 1,042 attendees and resulted in the collection of 14 pounds of unused medications. Families received OTC safety materials, Deterra pouches, and education from health vendors, while the Health Department distributed Narcan kits.
Red Ribbon Week activities further extended prevention efforts. Two high schools hosted lunch-period events reaching 55 students, and the coalition provided Cecil County Public Schools with a Red Ribbon Week digital bundle of lessons, posters, and social media content. Altogether, October efforts garnered nearly 1 million impressions, with prevention materials having the potential to reach all 15,000 students in the Cecil County Public Schools system.
