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So, here's a blurb about the new detox facility that we just opened today. This is the project that has been kicking my arse for the last 6 months.
New detox facility seen as lifesaver
Web Posted: 04/15/2008 01:47 AM CDT
Tracy Idell Hamilton
Express-News
If the three most important rules of real estate are location, location and location, then the nondescript building at 601 N. Frio St. is perfectly situated for its new role: transforming lives.
The new $4.2 million Public Safety Triage and Detoxification Facility backs up to the future Haven for Hope homeless services campus. Across Morales Street is the American GI Forum, a veterans' shelter, and on the other side of North Frio Street is the Center for Healthcare Services' Crisis Care Center.
That proximity will allow the agencies to work more closely together to stop the expensive cycle of dependency and homelessness that truncates so many lives in Bexar County.
The detox center, which has its grand opening today, fills a crucial gap in the community's social safety net. It also could save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars annually as those who cycle endlessly in and out of jail and local emergency rooms finally gain a place to both dry out safely and get long-term substance abuse treatment.
The detox center is part of an ongoing effort by county and city leaders, public health officials, law enforcement and the courts to provide needed treatment for those who used to get thrown in jail.
"This is life and death, immediate help and change," said Robert Marbut Jr., executive director for Haven for Hope, which took on the job of renovating the former laboratory on North Frio into the first facility of its kind in Texas.
The detox center will be run by the Center for Healthcare Services, which runs Bexar County's existing jail diversion program for the mentally ill — the Crisis Care Center, located inside the University Health Center Downtown.
That program has saved taxpayers at least $5 million in its first year of operation, according to a study done by Michael Johnsrud, a medical economist at the University of Texas at Austin.
In the past, police and sheriff's deputies had limited options when they detained someone who had committed a minor, nonviolent offense, like public intoxication: emergency room or jail.
If they chose the emergency room, the officer had to remain with that person, often for hours, incurring expensive overtime.
Jail has its own costs. Non-homeless offenders picked up for nuisance crimes are typically out in a day, while homeless inmates remain on average six times longer, according to figures compiled by CHCS, because they have no one to call and no resources to bail themselves out.
They also keep the jail full and sometimes beyond capacity, forcing the county to send inmates to neighboring counties at great cost.
From now on, instead of waiting around for hours, law enforcement will be able to drop someone off at the detox center, where the triage team will figure out the best course of action. This is where the new center's location will enhance the overall effort to help people in need.
If police bring in a drunk who simply needs to sleep it off, he'll be taken to the 40-bed "sobering room" down the hall. If immediate medical or mental health care is needed, he'll be moved to the Crisis Care Center across the street.
A community court in the detox center would offer intensive, on-site outpatient treatment to nonviolent offenders with recurring drug or alcohol problems, sparing them from jail or fines.
That intensive treatment, six to eight hours a day, five days a week, will complement Haven for Hope's comprehensive services, which will include housing and food; medical, dental and vision care; legal help; job and educational training; and even day care for children and veterinary services for pets.
Once Haven for Hope is open, those in the detox center's outpatient treatment program will be able to sleep there at night. If they are veterans — and almost 30 percent of the homeless are vets — they may be able to bunk at the American GI Forum, which helps homeless vets get back on their feet.
"This is sorely needed in the community," said Ignacio Leija, a vice president with the GI Forum, which will be expanding its residential offerings in direct response to the detox center's opening.
That opening would not have been possible without a $6.1 million grant from the state to pay for the renovation of the building and two years of operating costs.
Many credit Bill Greehey, chairman of Haven for Hope, for getting that money — and also for helping San Antonio move to a one-stop concept for helping people in trouble.
Greehey admits he didn't know much about homelessness when he first joined a city-sponsored task force on the issue.
"But as I began talking to people, it became obvious we'd need a detox center," he said. "Almost 60 percent of the homeless have drug or alcohol problems or mental illness."
The former Valero Energy CEO said he'd always been a good corporate citizen but had never really asked the Legislature for anything until now.
Greehey said when he told state Sen. Steve Ogden, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and a fellow oil and gas producer, that he wanted state help to open a detox center in Bexar County, "he almost fell out of his chair."
But Ogden, R-Bryan, and others were swayed by the numbers, Greehey said, and the center will serve as a potential model for other detox centers to be opened around the state.
"The greatest thing about having Bill Greehey involved with this," said Leon Evans, CEO of the Center for Health Care Services, "is that he's used to being successful. I feel a great burden not to let him down."
CHCS will closely track the savings and the number of those who successfully complete the programs to show the state, city and county the detox center's success. (that's my job, FYI)
Evans said the estimated annual operating cost of the center is roughly $3 million. The city, he said, has pledged $1 million and CHCS has requested $1 million from the county. The remaining costs for the next two years will come from the state money, he said.
"Substance abuse treatment is a big part of helping people start new lives," he said.
Or as Greehey put it: "Right now we're recycling. We've got to transform."
New detox facility seen as lifesaver
Web Posted: 04/15/2008 01:47 AM CDT
Tracy Idell Hamilton
Express-News
If the three most important rules of real estate are location, location and location, then the nondescript building at 601 N. Frio St. is perfectly situated for its new role: transforming lives.
The new $4.2 million Public Safety Triage and Detoxification Facility backs up to the future Haven for Hope homeless services campus. Across Morales Street is the American GI Forum, a veterans' shelter, and on the other side of North Frio Street is the Center for Healthcare Services' Crisis Care Center.
That proximity will allow the agencies to work more closely together to stop the expensive cycle of dependency and homelessness that truncates so many lives in Bexar County.
The detox center, which has its grand opening today, fills a crucial gap in the community's social safety net. It also could save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars annually as those who cycle endlessly in and out of jail and local emergency rooms finally gain a place to both dry out safely and get long-term substance abuse treatment.
The detox center is part of an ongoing effort by county and city leaders, public health officials, law enforcement and the courts to provide needed treatment for those who used to get thrown in jail.
"This is life and death, immediate help and change," said Robert Marbut Jr., executive director for Haven for Hope, which took on the job of renovating the former laboratory on North Frio into the first facility of its kind in Texas.
The detox center will be run by the Center for Healthcare Services, which runs Bexar County's existing jail diversion program for the mentally ill — the Crisis Care Center, located inside the University Health Center Downtown.
That program has saved taxpayers at least $5 million in its first year of operation, according to a study done by Michael Johnsrud, a medical economist at the University of Texas at Austin.
In the past, police and sheriff's deputies had limited options when they detained someone who had committed a minor, nonviolent offense, like public intoxication: emergency room or jail.
If they chose the emergency room, the officer had to remain with that person, often for hours, incurring expensive overtime.
Jail has its own costs. Non-homeless offenders picked up for nuisance crimes are typically out in a day, while homeless inmates remain on average six times longer, according to figures compiled by CHCS, because they have no one to call and no resources to bail themselves out.
They also keep the jail full and sometimes beyond capacity, forcing the county to send inmates to neighboring counties at great cost.
From now on, instead of waiting around for hours, law enforcement will be able to drop someone off at the detox center, where the triage team will figure out the best course of action. This is where the new center's location will enhance the overall effort to help people in need.
If police bring in a drunk who simply needs to sleep it off, he'll be taken to the 40-bed "sobering room" down the hall. If immediate medical or mental health care is needed, he'll be moved to the Crisis Care Center across the street.
A community court in the detox center would offer intensive, on-site outpatient treatment to nonviolent offenders with recurring drug or alcohol problems, sparing them from jail or fines.
That intensive treatment, six to eight hours a day, five days a week, will complement Haven for Hope's comprehensive services, which will include housing and food; medical, dental and vision care; legal help; job and educational training; and even day care for children and veterinary services for pets.
Once Haven for Hope is open, those in the detox center's outpatient treatment program will be able to sleep there at night. If they are veterans — and almost 30 percent of the homeless are vets — they may be able to bunk at the American GI Forum, which helps homeless vets get back on their feet.
"This is sorely needed in the community," said Ignacio Leija, a vice president with the GI Forum, which will be expanding its residential offerings in direct response to the detox center's opening.
That opening would not have been possible without a $6.1 million grant from the state to pay for the renovation of the building and two years of operating costs.
Many credit Bill Greehey, chairman of Haven for Hope, for getting that money — and also for helping San Antonio move to a one-stop concept for helping people in trouble.
Greehey admits he didn't know much about homelessness when he first joined a city-sponsored task force on the issue.
"But as I began talking to people, it became obvious we'd need a detox center," he said. "Almost 60 percent of the homeless have drug or alcohol problems or mental illness."
The former Valero Energy CEO said he'd always been a good corporate citizen but had never really asked the Legislature for anything until now.
Greehey said when he told state Sen. Steve Ogden, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and a fellow oil and gas producer, that he wanted state help to open a detox center in Bexar County, "he almost fell out of his chair."
But Ogden, R-Bryan, and others were swayed by the numbers, Greehey said, and the center will serve as a potential model for other detox centers to be opened around the state.
"The greatest thing about having Bill Greehey involved with this," said Leon Evans, CEO of the Center for Health Care Services, "is that he's used to being successful. I feel a great burden not to let him down."
CHCS will closely track the savings and the number of those who successfully complete the programs to show the state, city and county the detox center's success. (that's my job, FYI)
Evans said the estimated annual operating cost of the center is roughly $3 million. The city, he said, has pledged $1 million and CHCS has requested $1 million from the county. The remaining costs for the next two years will come from the state money, he said.
"Substance abuse treatment is a big part of helping people start new lives," he said.
Or as Greehey put it: "Right now we're recycling. We've got to transform."
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