Recovery center expands addiction treatment services
Trending
STEUBENVILLE -- Since November, area residents have been able to access detox and residential treatment options through a local provider.
According to Michael Thomas, the services offered by Milton Jefferson Recovery fill gaps that have existed for quite a while.
“I just want to say that I’m very grateful for Milton Jefferson -- we really needed this,” said Thomas, community liaison for the facility at 1852 Sinclair Ave.
When he speaks, Thomas knows what he is talking about. A recovering addict, Thomas told members of the Steubenville Kiwanis Club during Tuesday’s meeting that he had spent six months at a former area residential treatment center.
“That is how my journey began, and to have this now is a godsend,” he said. “My job for the past 40 years has been to be engaged with the community. I believe in bringing people together, especially when we have all of these stigmas because there are a lot of families affected with the disease of addiction.”
Thomas was joined during the presentation at the Sycamore Youth Center by Matt Grimard, Milton’s outpatient clinical director.
The detox and residential facility, he explained, added outpatient clinical services in March, an expansion that includes group work, individual counseling and medication management.
“We provide a full spectrum of services to allow our clients to continue all the way through treatment from the time they walk in the door,” Grimard explained.
“We allow each client to be individualized, and we schedule their treatment around their specific needs,” he added. “It’s not come in the door and everybody does one thing across the board. It’s really nice to have that opportunity to see everybody as an individual, and not just as part of a group.”
Milton is growing quickly, Grimard said, pointing to the 120 clients it is now serving. There are about 50 in the detox program on the residential side and 70 on the outpatient side, he added. The detox portion, he continued, provides services for a wide range of substances, including marijuana, alcohol, cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine.
“We have protocols for each client,” Grimard said. “Then we have a step-down program into residential treatment. After they detox, and it’s anywhere from three to 10 days depending on the substance, they transition to the residential side, where we keep them approximately 30 days, based on need.
“Upon completion of the program, we offer outpatient services,” he added. “Some clients choose to go outside the area, which is fine. We make referrals to other agencies to allow them to continue their treatment where they are going to be successful.”
There are about 120 employees at the facility. That includes nurses, behavioral health technicians, nurse practitioners and administrative staff members. By and large, once employees are hired, they stay with Milton.
Grimard said it’s the first facility of its kind to open in the area in more than 20 years. And, he added, the area has been receptive.
“It’s something in Jefferson County that we’re blessed to have the opportunity to provide,” he said.
“The community has been great with the support and is embracing it,” Grimard added. “I know there is a lot of stigma attached to addiction and recovery. We’ve had some great support, and that’s allowed us to continue doing what we have wanted to do.”
Even though the facility has been open for only about nine months, there have been success stories. Milton is seeing some clients graduate and integrate themselves into the community.
Some clients have received peer support certificates, allowing them to advocate for and work with other clients while offering help as they recover. Some clients have received even more advanced training and become chemical dependency counselor assistants.
“We just opened sober living in March,” Grimard said. “We currently have 25 male beds and 20 female beds, and we are full now, which is a blessing and a curse. We are blessed to be able to provide for those clients, but, obviously, there’s an opportunity for growth. We would like to be able to expand some of those services.”
Programs are voluntary. Some clients walk in off the street, some come in on probation and some are referred by other agencies. It’s primarily a Medicaid facility, he added.
While the emphasis is on serving Jefferson County residents, clients come from a wide area, Grimard said.
“It flexes, but I’d say, on average, it’s probably between 60% and 75% from Jefferson County,” Grimard said. “We do get clients from all over the state, and we’re working on getting West Virginia Medicaid. We have clients from Akron, Cleveland, Columbus and Marietta, and from as far away as Cincinnati and Toledo, but we do try to serve Jefferson County first.”
Some clients, he added, aren’t comfortable receiving services in areas surrounding their homes and have asked to be referred to other facilities. Milton also has been able to work with veterans who have found themselves in need of services.
Keeping connected with the community is vital for Milton to remain effective.
“I get a lot of calls from a lot of people,” Thomas said. “I’m just grateful to be an avenue and to be able to