Turning Point's new detox unit another step in community care

Kim Dunlap, Kokomo Tribune, Ind.
·4 min read

Nov. 26—Joseph Smith chuckled and let out a big smile when he talked about his father's recent reaction to Smith choosing to seek rehabilitation for his drug addiction.

"I think my dad was shocked," Smith recalled. "He said, 'Really? You're going to go?' And I said, 'Yeah.' And he said, 'OK, get in the truck, let's go. He was very excited and probably drove 90 (mph) just to get here."

Smith's been in and out of rehabilitation facilities several times now, but this was the first time he made that decision to get help on his own.

For that reason, Smith noted that this time felt different for him, and you could hear that resolution in his voice too.

And not even 10 minutes after walking into Turning Point's Detox Recovery Stabilization Center, Smith said he knew he would get the help he needed.

"The first person I talked to here said, 'Hey, I've been exactly where you're at,'" Smith told the Tribune. "And that just made it a lot easier to open up and accept it."

Since officially opening its doors Nov. 1, the recovery stabilization center has already helped numerous people like Smith too.

And the 12-bed detox unit, located at Turning Point System of Care's North Courtland Avenue facility, has also been a blessing that those involved said has been long overdue for the Howard County community.

Matt Oliver is Turning Point SOC's chief executive officer, and he took a few minutes to detail how the new unit will work for those who enter through its doors.

"This is a game changer for our community," he said. "... This is a voluntary, technically a residential subacute unit. That means we have all the things we need to make sure that we deliver medications and oversee detox safely, but we're still a non-locked facility.

"That means if anybody wants to leave, they can totally leave," he added. "We don't do seclusion or restraints here. If you come here, you're doing it voluntarily and because you are the one that is seeking the help."

Residents in the detox unit typically stay anywhere from 4-7 days, Oliver noted, though they technically have the ability to keep a person for up to 30.

Along with working with peer navigators and coaches, residents will also be able to take part in therapy while at the unit.

But Turning Point SOC's ultimate goal for the recovery stabilization center is to just be the first step along the road to active recovery.

"Our focus here is to help that person get through that detox and stop using," Oliver said. "And if they need medications to help them with their cravings, we can give them that. That way, they can start focusing on their recovery. And that way, they can come back into the community while the peer coach meets with them or a therapist, or both, and get them into recovery community activities."

Because allowing people to have a stake in their own recovery is monumental, Oliver said.

"The nice thing about this is that it's another option that didn't prior exist," he said. "... And to me, empowering people to make healthy choices is a great thing because they will most likely stick with it if they attribute the decisions to themselves. If they say, 'I invested in what it took to get me through detox ...' Because a lot of the people that have come through here say they're just tired of being tired, and they want a better life for themselves or their families."

Tera McConnell is one of the therapists at Turning Point SOC, and she said she hopes to see other locations around the state and country adapt the same type of model as what the organization uses here in Howard County.

"I feel like once the word about this gets out, it's going to take off," she said. "Because we're a system of care, a continuum of care. So, we start people off here, and then they go to the other side (additional recovery programs)."

"I think that what most people that come to Turning Point appreciate the most is that all of us have lived experience," McConnell added. "We're not just these professionals that think we know everything. We're all in recovery ourselves or know someone who is. So when people come in here, they feel a little bit more comfortable because we're on this journey with them."

And that brings us back to Smith, who said he had burned more bridges through his journey with addiction than he cared to think about.

That's why he was so thankful he discovered the recovery stabilization center when he did, and why he reiterated that he firmly believes this time will be different for him.

"It's an amazing thing, this place," Smith noted. "The resources, the one-stop-shop thing. You can literally get anything you can from this place. You don't have to go to 12 different places to get what you need. ... From the moment I walked in here, I felt like this was the right move. I never had a question about that."