Syracuse Behavioral Healthcare launches program for individuals with opioid addiction

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse Behavioral Healthcare (SBH) announced it has launched a new mobile health program that provides medication-assisted therapy, peer support, telehealth, and clinician services to about 2,100 people in Central New York who are struggling with an addiction to heroin and other opioids.

The program is spearheaded through SBH’s new Center of Treatment Innovation (COTI) with support from the NYS Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and funding through the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene. It will implement “novel approaches” to address service gaps and barriers in access to substance-abuse treatment and recovery programs across Onondaga, Cayuga, Madison, and Oswego counties, according to an SBH news release.

COTI will utilize two “state-of-the-art outreach vehicles” to provide transportation to onsite care, peer support, and mobile clinician services to individuals and families affected by opioid use disorders. Trained and certified peer specialists with recovery experience will assist individuals in regaining independence, sustaining recovery, and improving overall health.

According to a 2016 OASAS survey, more than 475,000 New Yorkers have used prescription pain relievers non-medically in the past year, including more than 68,000 who have used heroin. In all, 1.6 million New Yorkers admitted to using prescription pain relievers non-medically in the survey. The opioid epidemic has led to a “staggering increase” of 20.4 percent in the drug overdose death rate in New York, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Like the rest of New York, the four counties served by our new Center of Treatment Innovation have all experienced increased rates of opioid-related hospital admissions and deaths and have a strong need for medication assisted treatment and access to recovery programs,” Jeremy Klemanski, president and CEO of SBH, said in the release.

In March, New York announced $2.65 million to expand and develop non-traditional, treatment-support services throughout the state. SBH’s new Center of Treatment Innovation was selected and funded by the state to support the four counties in Central New York.

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