[V]alley Vista’s website acknowledges that “one size does not fit all” when it comes to treating substance use disorder.
That philosophy applies to the recent opening of a new treatment program at the Bradford-based facility. The program, dubbed the “Recovery Expedition Course,” caters to young men starting at age 16 and replaces an adolescent program that was phased out earlier this year.
Valley Vista is adding some staff, but there’s no net gain in beds. Rather, administrators said they are trying to eliminate wait times among a population with increasing treatment needs due to the opioid epidemic.
“We have experienced extended waitlists for some time, particularly on the men’s unit,” said Amanda Hudak, Valley Vista treatment director. “All too often, would-be patients have experienced overdoses while waiting for an inpatient treatment bed to become available. That’s just not acceptable. Launching the REC program offers a solution.”
Vermont saw 101 fatal opioid-related overdoses in 2017. That was a 5 percent increase from the year prior, according to state statistics.
While fatalities involving heroin decreased last year in Vermont, the number of deadly overdoses involving prescription opioids has remained steady and fentanyl-related deaths have increased dramatically.
The state’s “hub and spoke” outpatient program of medication-assisted treatment is one way of addressing the problem. But residential treatment programs offer more intensive services.
Valley Vista maintains 99 inpatient beds for addiction treatment at its Bradford headquarters and at a satellite location in Vergennes. Originally founded to serve women, the organization now treats men, women and adolescents.
Valley Vista is owned by Minnesota-based Meridian Behavioral Health.
Hudak said the parent company has been “instrumental” in allowing Valley Vista to revamp its programming this year. That shift involved the elimination of a co-ed adolescent program serving ages 13 to 17 in favor of the new program serving males aged 16 to 22.
In 2016 and 2017, only six 13- and 14-year-olds used the former adolescent program at Valley Vista.
Prior to this year’s change, “we would have empty beds on the adolescent unit and as much as a three-week wait on the men’s unit,” Valley Vista spokesman John Caceres said.
The new program, which features 14 inpatient beds in Bradford, began accepting patients Oct. 1. Caceres said demand has been “strong,” though he added that Valley Vista still is hiring staff for the unit.
The Recovery Expedition Course offers “services ranging from medically supervised detoxification to comprehensive post-discharge planning,” Valley Vista administrators said. The program received a state license July 1.
In a statement released by Valley Vista, Brenda Dawson, a residential licensing supervisor with the state Department for Children and Families, said the program realignment “can help reduce the number of overdoses that can happen while waiting for a residential bed to become available.”
The new program will include tutoring for those who are school-aged. It also will incorporate a “Seven Challenges” treatment model that originally was developed for young people but has been expanded for adults.
Caceres said the Recovery Expedition Course program’s name reflects “a new way of living. It’s exploring. It’s incorporating new decision processes into a person’s life.”