Mental Health

FALL 2019 / REAL-LEADERS.COM 59 else to help with other things, such as primary medical care, housing, jobs, nutrition, and fitness.” When jobs and housing are called “wrap-around services,” it’s infuriating to me. We cannot be so dismissive of someone’s critical needs and their hopes for the future. You’ve called addiction an epidemic. How widespread is addiction? In 2017, over 72,000 Americans were killed by drug overdoses. By comparison, the number of Americans killed throughout the Vietnamwar was around 58,000, and that was a 15-year war. Some of the best addiction treatment outcomes in the industry have been achieved at Concerted Care Group. How is this measured? Beacon Health claims data reported that our Intensive Outpatient Program had one of the lowest emergency room admittance rates in the state. Our electronic health records also showed a 79 percent patient success rate over 12 months. We actually dubbed this program the Awakening at CCG, after seeing patients’ success. The success rate report reflected clean toxicology and social determinants of health like independent living, gainful employment, productivity, and happiness. What makes the Awakening at CCG program different? Many of our young adult patients have been in and out of traditional rehabs, but nothing has stuck. We have a different approach — getting them off drugs and alcohol, but also guiding them to find meaning and purpose in their lives. Our patients spend half the day in traditional treatments and the other half in a service-oriented program, volunteering around the city of Baltimore. Each day, they work on themselves and find value in giving back. You treat people from various socioeconomic backgrounds, including low-income communities, and have publicly advocated for Medicaid and HUD to become a single entity. Why? The government tends to allocate resources sparsely and sporadically, even within the same populations. Medicaid and HUD cover the same people. Combining the two would send funds to one agency. We need to be paying providers for care that’s successful, not continuing the current fee-for-service model that consumes Beacon of Hope: Situated in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, All Points North Lodge looks nothing like the typical rehab center.