An inpatient substance abuse treatment center in Hagerstown, Maryland will be opening soon to provide help to people struggling with opioid use disorders in Washington County.
The inpatient substance abuse treatment center will be called Awakenings Recovery Center and be located in Downtown Hagerstown.
Amatus Health, a Maryland-based healthcare provider, is currently in the process of purchasing the building where the inpatient substance abuse treatment center will be operating. Officials indicated that the reason they want to open in Hagerstown was due to the fact that there were many outpatient addiction treatment centers but not many inpatient facilities.
Amatus Health operates multiple drug addiction treatment centers in several states and they offer a variety of addiction treatment services, including a holistic approach. It offers inpatient detox, mental health residential, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient program, and sober living programs.
Amatus follows the 12-step model and every patient gets a customized plan catered to their addiction treatment needs.
According to the Maryland Department of Health, there were 58 drug and alcohol related deaths in Washington County in 2017 and 17 drug and alcohol related deaths from January to March this year. There were 51 opioid-related deaths in Washington County in 2017, 22 of those deaths being attributed to heroin. From January to March, there were 14 opioid-related deaths in the county, eight of those being associated with heroin.
The Washington County Health Department has been attempting to fight the opioid epidemic by promoting healthy environments, preventing disease and educating the community. Their slogan is RECIPE, which stands for respect, excellence, commitment, integrity, professionalism and equity.
The county’s health department is a subdivision of the Maryland Department of Health and has instituted some drug abuse treatment programs to try and contain the epidemic in the area.
The Harm Reduction Program (or the Syringe Services Program) is an initiative to educate people on the dangers of substance abuse and reduce infectious diseases among intravenous drug users. The program also helps people find access to substance abuse treatment.
The county also has a Catoctin Summit Adolescent Program , which is a three-to-six-month addiction treatment program for adolescents under the age of 19 that are struggling with substance use disorders.
Additionally, the county has a Jail Substance Abuse Program that allows drug offenders to seek help for substance use disorders.
Clinically Managed Medium-Intensity Residential Treatment House Program is another residential program in the county that is funded by the state and focuses on helping pregnant women with substance use and alcohol use disorders.
Project ACT NOW is a community-based program set up to help address opioid use in Washington County. Project ACT NOW includes police departments, social service groups, mental health professionals and medical groups. The organizations meet once a month to discuss problems associated with opioid use disorders in the county. Occasionally, they will use recommendations from the Governor’s heroin task force to implement their own standards and regulations to fight the opioid epidemic.
The Washington County Health Department works with Maryland as state care coordination services are encompassed to help patients in recovery maintain sobriety.
The county — in partnership with the Hagerstown Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Washington County Health Department — hosted a drug disposal event last fall, which allowed local residents to confidentially drop off their unused prescription drugs.
For the upcoming facility in Hagerstown, representatives stated that there will be 24 people on staff, including a psychiatrist. They also indicated that there could be an added cost of $400,000 to finalize the inpatient substance abuse treatment center.
The inpatient substance abuse treatment center is expected to open on December 1.
