![]() ![]() She said when most of the world was shut down, along with in-person support groups, liquor stores remained open as essential businesses, and many stores shifted their alcohol sales to delivery, so gaining access was easy.ĭr. But we have seen a lot of individuals also with opioid-use disorder, cannabis-use disorder, and many other substances.” I think alcohol has been the most dramatic when we’re noticing that. “They found it harder to maintain sobriety or relapsed and sometimes relapsed in a fairly dramatic way. “We have noticed more individuals who, you know, had sobriety for a good amount of time,” she said. Jasleen Chhatwal, chief medical officer for Sierra Tucson, said the majority of patients she has seen seeking treatment during the past year are doing so after a relapse. Zeringue, who went to a treatment center to get sober, said “that’s what you have to do for people struggling with substance abuse and alcoholism, they have to go to treatment. The shorter the treatment stay, the chances for relapse continue to go up.” “They go out and basically detox, their insurance only pays a certain amount a day, and they go back out on the street really with not much of a toolbox. “So we see a lot of clients that would come to our program that readmit,” said Clunan, who is himself in recovery. Without a continuum of care, people are much more likely to relapse. Zeringue and Clunan agreed that, while progress has been made in Arizona and the country as a whole on the mental health front, more could be done to help struggling addicts pay for the treatment they desperately need. ![]() So we know that folks are struggling obviously through the pandemic.” I mean we still saw our admissions and our call center, you know the calls coming in, measuring those each month continuing to increase. “We saw it even through the COVID restrictions and everything. “That trend was already there, but the pandemic certainly didn’t help anything,” he said. While Maricopa County does not yet have 2020 data, the county counted 1,078 drug overdose deaths during 2019, which was largely attributed to opioids, methamphetamines and alcohol. “The more treatment, the better,” said Clunan.Ĭlunan said the combination of fentanyl’s increased hold on the market and the isolation brought by the pandemic made 2020 a difficult year for the industry. Most people seeking treatment stay in the program for an average of 30 days, but Zeringue and his colleague, Buena Vista’s Vice President of Sales Randy Clunan, say three to six months are recommended for a full recovery. To help combat this issue, Buena Vista offers both in-patient and outpatient treatment services at its two Valley campuses - a 40-bed residential and detox center in Chandler and a 14-bed detox campus in Cave Creek - along with one in Tucson. “The majority of people that call us with an opiate-use disorder are calling us about fentanyl, and the age of those individuals is younger than probably ever before, and usually with no other co-occurring substances.” “I’m in recovery myself and so I came from a place where a couple years ago you didn’t see that, ever,” he said of the deadly synthetic pills. ![]() Zeringue said fentanyl is the biggest issue facing addicts and treatment centers right now.įentanyl was involved in more than 60% of the overdose deaths during 2020, according to the CDC’s data.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |