Causes: Mental Health, Substance Abuse Treatment

Mission: Rushford center, inc. (the "center") is a nonprofit organization which is dedicated to meeting the substance abuse and mental health needs of children, adults and families. The center provides residential and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment services, prevention, intervention, counseling and aftercare. The center is a wholly owned subsidiary of hartford health care corporation. Hartford health care corporation is a nonprofit organization.

Programs: Intensive treatment program (itp) is a 42 bed, short-term, flexible length of stay, residential program that offers individual counseling, group therapy, family involvement and regular in-house 12-step meetings. Patients receive individualized treatment plans, continuing care updates and discharge plans. It is one component in a continuum of care for adults in need of substance abuse services. Middlesex county is the primary service area, with surrounding towns secondary, and other parts of connecticut served as program space allows. Itp is designed for patients who demonstrate serious refractory single or multi-chemical addictions and who require substantial structure and environmental changes, in order to gain progress toward recovery. Emphasis is placed on teaching patients about the disease process and sober living skills, and how to have fun during recovery. Itp has 20 hours per day of psychiatric coverage. Patients with psychiatric symptoms can be seen and assessed by a psychiatrist. This is a dual capable program with 24 hour nursing coverage. The acute care & evaluation (ace) staff meets medical and acute psychological needs on a 24 hour basis. Counselors provide treatment, via group and/or one-to-one counseling. Patients regularly attend aa/na meetings. A comprehensive discharge plan with specific discharge criteria is developed for each patient within 4 days of admission. Dual diagnosis patients with mild to moderate psychiatric symptomlogy, that does not preclude their ability to function in the residential environment, are managed on an individualized and creative basis. An aprn and psychiatrist are available to provide in-house consultation and psychopharmacological treatment and management for the dually diagnosed. In addition to the above services, our senior citizens are encouraged to attend a specialty group designed to address the lifestyle changes and other unique issues of this population. These groups discuss topics such as the potential for substance abuse, increased use of medications, structuring free time in retirement, adjustment to lower income, grief and loss issues, etc. Nutritional assessment and counseling is also available.

acute care and evaluation (ace) is one component of a continuum of care for adults in need of substance abuse services. It operates as the primary local resource for the evaluation and treatment of acute alcohol and drug detoxification with the purpose of medical stabilization as its primary objective. Middlesex county is the primary service area with secondary and tertiary service areas spanning a 100-mile radius. Ace is a 16 bed inpatient, medically monitored detoxification, evaluation and medical treatment unit. The average length of stay is 4 days. Short term counseling and discharge planning are provided to all patients on a regular basis. Protocols are in place for alcohol, opiate, and polysubstance detoxification including daily group activity designed to educate and prepare the patient for the next appropriate level of care. Safe containment and stabilization is provided for individuals who are entering treatment on an intensive level. All patients receive one-to-one counseling to encourage and motivate to achieve the appropriate level of care that is needed. This assessment often includes a complete biopsychosocial assessment, which affords a more comprehensive assessment process and determines either an internal (rci) or external treatment program. Our staff includes a medical director, manager, aprn, rn's, certified nursing assistants/counselor assistants and counselors. Nutritional assessment and counseling is also available when needed. A 16-hour, 7 day per week, (8 a. M. - midnight) rn-staffed acute care and evaluation unit administers services to catchment area 10. The acute care and evaluation unit provides a centralized location with specialized staff to provide assessment, intervention and referral services to substance abusers. This program was established in 1985 by legislative mandate and was initially designed to relieve area hospital emergency room utilization of substance abusers; nearly 200 patients are served monthly through the admissions and evaluation center, demonstrating a successful achievement of this goal. Further, through screening and referral to rushford's acute care unit, 75-80% of the patients are diverted from admission to cvh addiction services and middlesex hospital, thereby avoiding an excessive demand on those providers.

rushford center's substance abuse services, known as turning point, comprise three levels of care - partial hospital program, intensive outpatient treatment, and outpatient treatment. This is an adult treatment program serving male and female substance abusers eighteen years of age and older who are referred primarily from the towns of meriden and wallingford. Services are provided during the day and in the evenings on weekdays. The average length of time in outpatient services varies widely and is dependent on the individualized needs of patients. An episode of treatment can range from several weeks to several months. Turning point is structured to allow for fluid movement through its continuum of outpatient services, but individuals can enter treatment at any level. Rushford follows the asam (american society for addiction medicine) criteria for determining the level of acuity and most appropriate level of care. A comprehensive biopsychosocial assessment drives the individualized treatment plan, utilizing concrete treatment goals and objectives and identifying discharge criteria at the onset of care. Turning point operates primarily on a brief-treatment, solution-focused group model supplemented with individual counseling. Men and women groups address gender-specific issues, parenting (especially for the dcf referred patients) and interpersonal relationships. Maintaining abstinence and the refinement of already acquired skills is the goal of relapse prevention and aftercare group. Anger management group focuses on the acquisition of assertiveness skills and the appropriate management of intense emotional states as a means of assisting patients in strengthening their capacity to develop and maintain mutually respectful relationships. A post-traumatic stress disorder (ptsd) trauma group is provided for individuals with significant trauma history that may impede recovery. Every effort is made to involve patients in peer support groups such as 12 step self-help groups and rational recovery. Referrals are made for mental health services as needed. In an effort to strengthen the social support network of a patient, rushford offers family education and counseling. All individual and group work is done under the supervision of a consulting psychiatrist. Patients presenting significant psychiatric symptoms are consistently identified for referral either to rushford's consulting psychiatrist or psychiatric clinical nurse specialist/aprn, for individualized diagnostic assessment and disposition. This assessment may include prescribing appropriate medications and monitoring patient progress in an individual session, or in a weekly medication group facilitated by the clinical nurse specialist/aprn. Physical location - services are provided at 883 paddock avenue, meriden. This was a former inpatient general hospital, but is currently used for ambulatory health and behavioral health services. There is a main entrance at the front of the building where patients can park, and is accessable by public transportation. The building is two stories. Adjacent to the entrance foyer is an elevator and stairway. The facility is accessible for disabled persons. The first floor is a reception area, waiting room, registration and a patient accounts department. All services are provided on the 2nd floor level, including outpatient psychiatric services and substance abuse treatment services.