The San Francisco Department of Public Health was asked by the National Association of City and County Health Officials (NACCHO) to plan and coordinate a two-day virtual Drug User Health Symposium as part of its Overdose Prevention and Response Mentorship Program. The purpose of this national symposium was to highlight the strength of community-government partnerships in meeting the needs of people who use drugs, and lift up innovative practices for harm reduction in the era of COVID-19.
Facente Consulting provided project management for the two-day symposium, which was held virtually and attended by nearly 200 people across the country. We worked with a group of key stakeholders to select presenters, provided technical assistance for presentation development, oversaw event promotion, and designed merchandise for participants to help personalize the experience for virtual attendees. Dr. Facente served as the master of ceremonies throughout the event, and was assisted by other Facente Consulting staff who facilitated breakout rooms and led other interactive activities. We were responsible for managing the technical production of the event, which was hosted through Zoom’s webinar feature. We used Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) to incorporate music, title cards, control of speaker windows, and other presentation features in order to provide a professional and polished experience for attendees.