This Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating the women of harm reduction who provide lifechanging, lifesaving services every day here at Prevention Point Philadelphia (PPP). Dee-Dee Pope is a case manager in our Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) Clinic and has been with PPP since July 2024. In her role, she says, she assists people “where they are” in their substance use journey and in life. Dee-Dee and her team support clinic patients with wraparound case management services, including housing, food security, help with utility bills, getting into rehab, and more.
As a person who has experienced substance use disorder, Dee-Dee feels it is her life’s purpose to help others who are still struggling.
“I got into recovery on July 29, 2001,” she says. “A lot of these resources were not available when I was having issues with substance use. I love that Prevention Point has a program for everything, any need that a person may have when they’re dealing with substance use. It’s very important that we can provide those services, not just direct them somewhere else.”
Dee-Dee’s path to social work and harm reduction was shaped by years of self-discovery and spiritual reflection. Immediately after getting into recovery, Dee-Dee earned her associate’s degree in paralegal studies and worked in law for 10 years. She then worked in an academic setting for five years.
“I got to the point where I said, this can't be all there is to life, just going through it,” Dee-Dee recalls. “I'm not going to be around forever... There has to be a purpose as to why I'm here. I said, ‘what is it, Dee-Dee, that you do effortlessly and that you enjoy? I realized, through all the things that I had been doing since I got clean, the main thing that I received the most pleasure out of was helping people.”
Dee-Dee went back to school and finished her bachelor’s degree in human services. Each time she returned to school, she graduated at the top of her class.
‘I'm here to tell all of my peers that when you're ready, you can do anything you want to do. But you have to be ready. Nobody can do it for you,” Dee-Dee says. “I work at Prevention Point because I'm here to help you until you get to that point."
As a human services professional, a mother, and a woman in recovery, Dee-Dee relates to her participants’ experiences on multiple levels.
“I want all the women out here to know that just because you make a decision today that doesn't seem favorable does not mean that you're a bad person and that you're not worthy of anything else,” Dee-Dee says. “Women are strong. We're resourceful. We work with what we have. Some people come out untouched, unblemished. Others might come out on top, but they've been through some things. That's what makes us who we are.”