Google has announced that it is joining the celebration of this year"s National Recovery Month with a new set of tools to help those struggling with substance abuse. In a blog post, one of the company"s employees shares her own story of abuse and recovery, and in fact, Google has launched a series of videos of employees sharing their stories with this problem.
Those videos are available on a new web page, in addition to other resources to help those suffering directly or indirectly from substance abuse. These include tools to find helpful resources nearby, links to associations or organizations that deal with substance abuse, and suggestions for how people can help those around them.
Beyond that webpage, Google is also bringing a couple of new features to Google Maps. For those looking for recovery help, a new locator tool can help them find support meetings for groups such as AA, NA, SmartRecovery, and school-based services. These services can be found in over 33,000 locations across the United States, and Google Maps should now help you find them. For emergencies, there"s also a Naloxone locator tool, so you can find places nearby where you can get the opioid overdose-reversal drug without a prescription - including CVS Pharmacies, Rite-Aid, and more.
According to Google, it"s estimated that one-third of American households are impacted by substance abuse in some way, and at least 23 million Americans are currently in long-term recovery. Google hopes that these tools can help those who need them the most.