Ku Aloha Ola Mau

I've been honored and privileged be around the Ku Aloha folks for six years and I can say that my experience of them is an humbling one.

I have never seen such unrelenting positive care and aloha! Their staff work tirelessly to make sure people receive the best care, and learn lifelong skills that make a positive difference.

The number of people they serve in each site is amazing, and the efforts they go to be respectful and help people develop dignity and community are very high. They work to maintain positive mana and aloha, and do a really good job in spite of limited resources.

In the six years I've been affiliated with them, dropping in or making a scheduled visit, I've never seen anything except the highest standards of professionalism. I feel confident, safe, and cared for as a part of their community--and I think the over 13,000 people they have served are lucky to have chosen Ku Aloha!

While the goals and mission statement of Ku Aloha are admirable the day to day practices are shameful. I have seen dealers that care more for their clients than Ku Aloha and they frequently lie about policies if it makes their jobs easier. Client documents are left in plain sight and they do not hesitate to discuss client details loudly in public. Clients who are on insurance suddenly find many more procedures are required while private pay clients are pushed out the door as quickly as possible. Every day there is a bad day for the staff and you can plan on being met with loud sighs, frowning faces, and derision your entire time there.

The biggest issue I have with Ku Aloha, and to a lesser extent other programs of similar nature, is that your recovery is not a priority; often street dealers will express concern for their customers and advise that they quit or take breaks from drugs use.... Not Ku Aloha, they have monetary interest in keeping you in the program and will intentionally make it difficult to leave or lower your dose. Drug addiction is unhealthy, even legal drugs like methadone, keeping a client addicted is deplorable. They make it easy to raise your dosage but requests to lower dosage are met with argument and belittling.

Many of the counselors and especially the doctor will deride clients in truly unnecessary ways, treating them as sub-humans, merely cattle to be processed and more money in the bank. If you look through the reviews for them on this site there is a conspicuous lack of client reviews, only staff.

However it isn't all doom and gloom, the nurses don't seem to have acquired the same attitude towards clients and can be helpful; the same for many of the clients themselves, many of the more experienced addicts can be a font of useful information(if only cautionary!).

I hope my more honest review can be of use to somebody!

Ku Aloha Ola Mau lives and breathes aloha by providing one of the best culturally sensitive treatment services to individuals suffering from drug addiction. Lisa Cook, their executive director willingly shares her mana`o with everyone who asks for help. Po`okela!

Ku Aloha Mau provides culturally sensitive and appropriate substance and mental health education, prevention, and treatment to both rural and urban communities in Hawaii on two island; Hawaii and Oahu. The program incorporates Native Hawaiian healing and spiritual practices, values, and language into their work. This makes them unique in their approach and services. Program outcomes have been very positive. Staff is caring and supportive and wonderful to work with. They really understand and connect with the individuals the agency serves. The staff's respect for the land, values and elders of the community are exemplary. The agency holds a high respect from the community they serve, community and State partners, and vendors. As a professional social worker, I have worked with the organization as a community consultant and partner for a number of years and have a high degree of respect for the staff and their services.

this is one of the most outstanding agencies that addresses a specific population which many agencies are unable to address and that is of the opiate addicted individual. the agency addresses the needs of this population both spiritually culturally and professionally. in my opinion they do the best work with the people who need them the most.

Been an employee for almost 24 years, its been the most caring, loving and wonderful working experience that I continue to have. The staff are wonderful and our haumana make this such a great place to come to each day! Thank you Ku Aloha !

When I first encountered Ku Aloha Ola Mau as someone who helps organizations become more Trauma-Informed, I was curious about how their traditional values-driven program worked. The more I came to understand the focus on helping the haumana (students) learn and practicing reconnecting to health, learning how to build sturdy relationships grounded in acceptance--shame-free acceptance--the more I realized how powerful their work is. I am convinced that the success of their work, grounded in values and practices that are life-restoring and healing, welcoming instead of shaming, connecting and restoring, is because of its' grounding. Ku Aloha completes the circle of healing, and helps people extend their own. It's Pono at the highest level.

I have been working at KAOM for 2 1/2 years now and have found the staff very friendly and genuinely concerned for the clients. They whole staff takes good care of their clients. They staff work hard to be the best in their field.

My professional career began at Ku Aloha (formerly known as DASH). During my tenure I learned work ethic, I learned a sense of belonging, I learned how to be a good supervisor. The lessons taught to me were invaluable and I have taken those lessons and incorporated into my sense of style and leadership abilities. Thank you DASH!

Ku Aloha Ola Mau has taken great strides to move above and beyond the usual substance abuse treatment, focusing not only on evidence based practices (such as cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing/motivation enhancement therapy, and brief strategic therapy), but also holistic, spiritual approaches which aims to heal the individual and their families as a whole, mentally, physically, and spiritually.

KAOM is an organization that is determined to help our haumana be successful in life by providing comprehensive programs to assist them with addiction and in other areas of their life (art group, counseling, men's and women's group, acupuncture) just to name a few.

Ku Aloha has saved my life! I would be in a much different place right now if it weren't for them. Every person who works there always greats you with a warm smile. I feel like it is my home away from home. Mahalo to Ku Aloha for not just going through the motions but actually caring and being present without any judgement,

I came to Ku Aloha Ola Mau as a practicum counseling psychology student. What attracted me to this place is that they view helping the client from a wholistic perspecitive, not just treating the addiction. Ku Aloha Ola Mau sees each person an individual that needs to be understood within the context of their unique history in order to be helped in the way that will bring them to a place of higher functioning. The time I have spent here has challenged my personal stereotypes of addiction and has educated me that addiction does not discriminate who it can fall upon. Ku Aloha Ola Mau is a place where acceptance, growth and accountability are encouraged to the staff and clients.

Ku Aloha Ola Mau is a place of healing and sanctuary for those seeking out assistance and recovery from opiate addiction. Their warm and loving " ohana" like environment and caring staff makes it easy to feel at ease which enhances the connection with the staff in tune leading to a successful recovery. Ku Aloha Ola Mau is culturally sensitive and diverse which is a component that makes them stand out from other programs statewide. I highly recommend contacting them if you or someone you know is in need of help for opiate addiction.

My name is Rachel and I would like to say that I have worked with Ku Aloha Ola Mau's Hilo Office as a HIV/Hep C tester and counselor and have really enjoyed sharing my services with them. I have offered my expertise to both clients and employees. Every time I have gone to their office it has been a great experience. The clients are very engaging and of course the employees have all been very caring and compassionate. Ku Aloha Ola Mau does a very good job at providing their services and meeting the needs of their client's.

This program assist those that has an addiction to Opioid and unfortunately it is often misunderstood, yet the services is much needed. This program helps make changes to clients lives, who previously saw no end to their addiction. Methadone and Suboxone treatment, along with counseling and group sessions, provide a different avenue for clients to get themselves better and to be productive individual.

I have had personal experience working with Ku Aloha Ola Mau. They have a comprehensive addiction treatment program including not just Methadone Medication but Meditation, Acupuncture, Psychological treatment , Arts program, Music program, Recovery groups and individual counseling. The emphasis is to address not just the disease but the overall person. To see a person in recovery as they change and become self assured and healthy is so worth the hard work and effort the entire staff puts in. I am proud to work for this company.

Ku Aloha has, and continues to, strive for facilitating improvement in the lives of those with opiate addiction in the face of still lingering bias against methadone agonist therapy. They are committed to helping the most fragile and damaged individuals in our society, ignoring a concensus that many of these people are un-reachable. They continue to do this in the face of fiscal uncertainty with resolve and dedication to the community. This is truly a remarkable organization, and worthy of any/all support we can give.

Wonderful place to be an employed at. Staff is wonderful. The haumana are caring and loving people that become part of your family. When I walk through the day each morning, I feel safe and much love here. Ku Aloha Ola Mau cares about each person here rather an employee or a haumana.

As a practicing addiction psychiatrist, i make many referrals to Ku Aloha Ola Mau. I am so pleased with the results - they improve lives, allowing them to become productive again. They provide a range of supportive services, and profit is not their motive.

I've been volunteering with Ku Aloha for roughly 9 months now and the experience I've had has been nothing short of wonderful. The aura of family that encompasses the organization is unlike anything I've ever seen. To be able to see both the staff and the clients working together so as to always be bettering the services for everyone involved is both novel and inspirational to me. Over the course of my time here I've learned that one's own culture plays a major role in any healing process. Ku Aloha fully recognizes this and factors culture into nearly every decision made regarding our clients. The counselors work with the clients on an incredibly personal level and never hesisitate to assist me with any questions that I've had (More often they're offering help). I have nothing but the highest respect for this place of healing and would fully recommend it to anyone seeking treatment for addiction.

I have been on the board for several years, and continue to serve because I strongly believe in what the organizations stands for. Essentially, we believe that all who come to us may be returned to wholeness and become viable, productive members of their community.

I'm a Proud Board Member of Ku Aloha Ola Mua ! Years ago my first contact with this service was when I opened my first Furniture store downstairs from KAOM ,We did not want Treatment centers in the same area as our retail stores , and we tryed to get KAOM to move out of the area , Years later by some Strange twist of faith , I become friends with some of the Staff at KAOM , the more I got to know the people at Ku Aloha Ola Mua , the more my Heart began to change , I have seen a few good hearted loving people care for so many people in need that most of the world careless for and it has made me a better person.

I have been on the board since 1992. This organization is dedicated to normalizing life for those with drug addiction problems. We maintain strong fiscal responsibility and constantly seek improvements in the outcomes of the people we serve.
It is amazing the number of people I meet that have been impacted by our organization. All is kept is the greatest confidence because of the social stigma that addiction has .