In the News – Toledo Blade

Click below for the feature story in Sunday’s (March 9, 2014) edition of the Toledo Blade.

“Findlay Grandfather Turns Grief of Grandson’s Death into Anti-Drug Crusade”

Fewer Ohio Kids Abusing Rx Painkillers…

Fewer Ohio Kids Abusing Rx Painkillers, Many Texting & Driving Survey by Ohio Department of Health monitors students’ health risks & behaviors

COLUMBUS—Prescription painkiller abuse by teens dropped nearly in half during the past two years,
according to the Ohio Department of Health’s 2013 Ohio Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). In 2011,
21.3 percent of students reported using prescription pain relievers or painkillers without a doctor’s
prescription one or more times during their life; in 2013 that dropped to 12.8 percent. The number of
Ohio’s youth who reported using heroin also decreased from 3.1 percent to 2 percent.
“Ohio has made the fight on prescription opioids a priority and it is showing in the choices that our
children are making,” said Lance Himes, Interim Director for the Ohio Department of Health. “While this
is great news, there is still a lot of work to be done in physical nutrition and other risky behavior.”

For the complete news release, click HERE.

March-April 2014 Newsletter

Click HERE to read the latest edition of The Highlighter.

Board Meeting Minutes & Committee Meeting Reports

Board Meeting Minutes & Committee Meeting Reports are available on the ADAMHS Page under the BD MEETING Tab or by clicking HERE.

The Courier – Residential Treatment Center

Residential treatment center plans advance

Findlay center will have room to treat 12 substance abusers

By RYAN DUNN

STAFF WRITER

A group of agencies is working to open Hancock County’s first residential treatment center late this year.

Renovation work will transform a former cabinet store at 2627 Crystal Ave. in Findlay into a house where 12 people can overcome substance abuse. Century Health purchased the property earlier this month.

The treatment center, including renovations, will cost about $600,000. The project is being funded with public and private money.

“This is the largest project we have ever done that we can say is public, private, faith-based,” said Precia Stuby, executive director of the Hancock County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services board. “We are putting all those funds to create that safety net so that people can get help.”

Officials hope to begin care at the 3,750-square-foot property by December.

Residential treatment centers remove patients from the lifestyle that led to their addictions, said Tina Pine, executive director of Century Health.

Pine said a manager will select residents by assessing cases. Staff will monitor them all day, she said.

Residents will stay until completing their program. The average stay is about three to nine months, Pine said.

Specialized substance abuse assistance offers vital support, Stuby said.

“By and large, you’re on a deeper end of a problem before you would need residential treatment,” Stuby said.
Recent trends suggest many of the patients will be battling painkiller abuse, Stuby said. Treatment centers restrict residents from obtaining drugs and teach them to resolve problems, she said.

The property will have individual bedrooms and an outdoor area for residents. The remaining woodwork from its days as a cabinet store adds a “homey feel” worth preserving, Stuby said.

Residents will receive more intensive treatment than outpatient care, totaling about four to five hours per day, Stuby said.

“If you can piece together 90 days of no use, then you have a 50 percent chance of being substance-free at the end of a year,” Stuby said.

That rate falls to 10 percent without those drug-free three months, she said.

Many addicts carry a false stigma that the problem is a character defect and not a disease, said Dr. Bill Kose, chief quality officer at Blanchard Valley Hospital.

The center will follow medically sound treatment and encourage others to seek help, said Kose.

Providing this service can curb the “revolving door” of substance abuse where abusers end up in the hospital’s intensive care unit or the county jail, Kose said.

Contributions to the project have come from the Ohio Department of Mental Health, the Hancock County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services board, Marathon Petroleum Corp., Century Health and Huntington Bank.

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati provided a loan.

St. Andrews United Methodist Church is also contributing to the project, said Pastor Debbie Kaylor.

“Certainly addiction crosses socioeconomic boundaries. We have people within our congregation who need it, and I’m sure that’s true of every congregation in town,” Kaylor said.

The church hopes to provide services to the center residents as well, Kaylor said. Dunn: 419-427-8417 ryandunn@thecourier.com Twitter: @CourierRyan