The SOAR Initiative

SAFETY. OUTREACH. AUTONOMY. RESPECT.
We work to prevent overdoses and save lives through harm reduction. Our focus is on people who use drugs and how we can help make their lives safer. People with lived experience play an integral role in conceiving, designing, and implementing our projects, and we always strive to protect their anonymity and amplify their unique voice.

PROJECTS

ABOUT US

Supporting Ohioans through a comprehensive harm reduction approach.

Harm reduction means doing everything we can to reduce the risk of drug overdose. We do not judge or seek to force anyone into treatment, we provide resources to help people who use drugs be as safe as possible. The strength of our community combined with the power of our innovative technologies can save lives.

Students working with their communities.

The SOAR Initiative was founded by a group of dedicated, passionate students at The Ohio State University. We work with government agencies, established nonprofits, local activists, and amazing communities throughout the state. Our innovative, evidence-based technologies and projects concentrate on helping those left behind by traditional public health and substance use programs.

Know of a bad batch? Report it anonymously to keep your community safe!

Click here to report a drug that contains fentanyl or other dangerous adulterants.

Keep you & your loved ones safe.

Download the free “SOAR Central Ohio” app to get alerts when overdoses surge or dangerous drugs are reported, and to access harm reduction resources.

Or text “SOAR” to 614-768-7627 (Central Ohio), 440-762-7627 (Cleveland), or 513-447-6276 (Southwest Ohio) to securely and anonymously receive SMS alerts.

Find harm reduction resources near you.

There is help available for you and your loved ones to be safer when using drugs. Explore this interactive map to find sterile use supplies, testing for diseases like HIV and Hepatitis C, fentanyl test strips, and Narcan (naloxone).

Have comments about this map? Click here to report a mistake, ask a question, or add a new service.

For information about addiction treatment resources, visit methadoneclinic.com to find methadone clinics near you or SAMHSA's treatment locator for other types of treatment.

LEARN MORE ABOUT HARM REDUCTION:

Sterile use supplies include clean syringes, bandages, antiseptic wipes, tourniquets, cookers, and cotton balls to prevent infections, abscesses, and the spread of blood-borne diseases like HIV and Hepatitis C.

Fentanyl test strips let you test your drugs for the presence of fentanyl, a powerful opioid that causes the vast majority of overdose deaths. They are especially important for people who use meth, cocaine, or prescription pills that they may not expect to be laced with strong opioids. About 11% of cocaine and 4% of meth contains fentanyl (Harm Reduction Ohio).

Narcan, also known as naloxone, is a life-saving medication that reverses opioid overdoses within a few minutes. It comes either as a nasal spray or an injection and should be carried by everyone close to people who use drugs.

The SOAR App

The SOAR App is for people who use drugs, their loved ones, emergency medical professionals, treatment providers, outreach workers, and the general public. Users can securely and anonymously subscribe to receive Overdose Surge and Deadly Batch Alerts when there is a spike in overdoses or dangerous drugs are found in a certain area. We believe people who use drugs deserve to have all the information possible about what they take so they can make choices about how to use more safely, including using slowly, testing their drugs, and having other people present with Narcan available.

The SOAR App also empowers users to keep each other safe by reporting bad batches. No personal information is collected or stored and only a general location is requested. These community alerts are aggregated and screened by our team before being sent out to warn other users and public health officials before overdoses start to surge.

Download the SOAR Central Ohio app on the Google Play Store and on the Apple App Store. Click here to view the app's privacy policy. The SOAR Cleveland app will be available in Summer 2021, with more cities to follow.

Text Alerts

SOAR also sends Overdose Surge and Deadly Batch Alerts via SMS text messages for anyone without access to a smartphone. Text “SOAR” to 614-768-7627 (Central Ohio), 440-762-7627 (Cleveland), or 513-447-6276 (Southwest Ohio) to anonymously sign up. The Deadly Batch Alert system is based on a similar system created in Baltimore.

Fentanyl Test Strips

Fentanyl test strips are an innovative harm reduction tool that allows any drug to be quickly tested for the presence of fentanyl, an opioid that is dozens of times more potent than heroin and causes the vast majority of overdose deaths. Recent research shows that people with access to fentanyl test strips are better able to make safer choices about using drugs more slowly and having Narcan and other people present.

We partner with Faith Mission, a shelter and treatment program in downtown Columbus to conduct an IRB-approved research study on the use of fentanyl test strips as a harm reduction tool. We provide fentanyl test strips for free and are able to contribute to the growing body of research on their efficacy.

SOAR also distributes fentanyl test strips at other locations around the city. If you or someone you know in central Ohio needs test strips, please visit https://thesoarinitiative.org/#teststrips.

View our annual report

Thank you to our incredible partners!

Join our team!
We are hiring! As we expand throughout Ohio in the summer of 2022, we are looking for part-time outreach workers to build community and bring our services to people on the ground across the state. If you live in Ohio and have experience in harm reduction, we'd love to have you on our team! We value lived experience. Positions are 10 hours of work per week, pay $15/hour, and are funded through September 2022 with the possibility of extension. Click the button below to learn more, and email [email protected] to apply!

LEARN MORE

PRANAV PADMANABHAN

Executive Director (he/him/his or they/them/theirs)
[email protected]

Pranav studies Geography and Public Health at Ohio State University and hopes to become an epidemiologist specializing in substance use. As Executive Director, he manages SOAR’s daily operations, strategic direction, and community partnerships. Pranav joined SOAR to use his skills to help fill a crucial gap in Ohio's response to the overdose epidemic. He hopes to empower people who are often invisible to public health services with the resources and knowledge they need to stay alive and healthy.

SYDNEY SAUER

Director of Operations (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Sydney majors in Sociology and minors in Entrepreneurship and Computer Science. She manages SOAR's financial, legal, and operational processes such as grant writing, payroll, and filing IRS documents. Sydney is a firm believer in finding evidence-based solutions to social struggles and sees harm reduction as a prime example of how sociological principles can save lives. After graduation, she hopes to pursue her PhD in sociology and go into public communications.

DENNIS PALES

Director of Community Relations (he/him/his)
[email protected]

Dennis majors in Biology and Public Affairs at Ohio State and hopes to work as a physician specialized in the treatment of substance use disorders. Dennis focuses on SOAR's community outreach and the maintenance of a fentanyl test strip distribution program that aims to provide folks with the means to test their substances, use as safely as possible, and inform others in the community of potentially deadly batches of drugs. The opioid epidemic has been devastating to Franklin County and Dennis joined SOAR to expand access to life-saving harm reduction tools. He hopes to end the stigma associated with drug use and provide folks with every tool possible to use safely and prevent overdose deaths.

VARSHITA CHIRUMAMILLA

Director of Research (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Varshita is a biomedical science major with minors in medical humanities and pharmacology. She is interested in the overlap of public health practices in medicine, especially as it pertains to addiction and maternal medicine, with hopes of going to medical school after graduation from Ohio State. Varshita serves as the primary coordinator of the fentanyl test strip research project conducted at Faith Mission to assess the efficacy and distribution of test strip results in central Ohio, and she hopes to publish these results. Additionally, she conducts focus group testing of the app with members of the harm reduction community. She joined SOAR because of her experience growing up in central Ohio and seeing how substance use without proper resources can negatively impact many communities.

JOEY ESPOSITO

Director of Technology (he/him/his)
[email protected]

Joey is a Data Analytics Major and Mathematics Minor in the OSU College of Arts and Sciences, who would like to become a Data Scientist upon graduation. He is responsible for maintaining the technology behind SOAR's Deadly Batch Alert System, and working with the developers behind the SOAR app. He also has an active role in determining the technological future of the organization. He joined SOAR in order to make a difference reducing the harm caused by the opioid epidemic, a cause he has personal connections to. Joey looks forward to helping provide the resources and infrastructure for communities to better understand the problems caused by opioids and help keep themselves safe through a modern, people-centered approach.

KATE LUCKERMAN

Front-end Developer (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Kate is studying Computer and Information Science and pursuing a career in software development. She develops and maintains the SOAR Columbus app for iOS and Android using React Native. Kate joined SOAR to follow her passion for using technology to help communities. She looks forward to seeing the mobile app expand SOAR's reach and ability to support people remotely.

KIM MAXIMOVICH

Project Manager, "Strip Club" Program (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Kim is a Public Health student with a specialization in Sociology at Ohio State University, and is nearing the end of her senior year. Long term, she would love to get a Master’s and become a biostatistician. Despite having a specific interest in biostatistics, Kim loves nearly all aspects of public health, ultimately finding fulfillment in anything that improves the lives and well-being of others. She is excited to help find more ways to get fentanyl test strips and other harm reduction supplies out to the Ohioans who need them most.

JESSICA MITSCH

Outreach Worker (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Jessica is a Neuroscience major and Pharmaceutical Sciences minor at The Ohio State University. She is interested in pursuing a career in medicine and making healthcare more inclusive. As a member of SOAR, she would like to contribute by spreading their mission and expanding their services throughout Ohio.

ANDREA HEFFERAN

Marketing Manager (she/her/hers)
[email protected]

Andrea is a first-year Marketing major with a minor in Design Thinking. She is interested in outreach and making harm-reduction resources accessible to as many people as possible. She is also excited to work with community members and help expand SOAR.

LARKIN CLELAND

Executive Board Member (he/him/his)
[email protected]

Larkin majors in Geography, Arabic, and Islamic Studies and plans to work in the future with international nonprofits on public health and migration. He was SOAR's first Director of Operations and has now moved to the Executive Board. Larkin joined SOAR because he has personal connections to people affected by opioids and addiction and believes strongly in harm reduction. He hopes to help SOAR provide services that will save lives.