Page 12 - Healthcare News Nov/Dec 2022

ADDICTION CONT’D
Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders said. “By working to destigmatize addiction and meeting people where they’re at, including with an expanded array of harm-reduction tools, we can reverse this negative trend.”
Locally, organizations committed to improving behavioral health — and removing the stigma and barriers that keep people from accessing care — are doing just that.
Support System
Palmieri said it’s important to remember that recovery doesn’t happen in a vacuum, but is tied to social determinants like housing and economic stability.
“Whether it’s opioids or anything else, our role is to help people understand what’s getting in the way of their recovery and help fill the void that used to be filled with drugs or alcohol with things they can find meaning in,” she told HCN. “We’re not only inter- ested in sobriety and helping people stop using, but also, what are you going to do instead? Our primary goal in our residential programs and our housing programs is to make sure people have a safe, afford- able place to go to live after treatment, someplace that isn’t necessarily the same neighborhood where they started using in the first place, someplace they can afford and sustain — but also to find employ- ment, something that gives their life meaning beyond using, something they can wrap recovery around.”
René Piñero, vice president of Behavioral Health
& Clinical Operations at MHA, said the pandemic curtailed some services in the community to counter addiction.
“But I definitely agree that it’s not all about acces- sible treatment; it’s about having housing and other supports. The state has provided funding for these programs and services, but it’s also about where people go to live after
history of opioid addiction, in lots of ways that aren’t based in reality, but based in fear, based in discrimi- nation, based in stigma.”
Krauskopf said the Greater Holyoke area has plen- ty of resources in place, including MiraVista, which offers a full continuum of substance-use program- ming, from acute inpatient detox to a clinical stabili-
treatment, what sup- ports they have, and opportunities to find employment. Even if we have treatment that is accessible for them,
if we can’t find them a home address, it’s going to be more difficult.”
“
For those lacking
access to care, the
pandemic-driven isola-
tion people felt didn’t help, Palmieri added — and in some cases increased a sense of stigma around seeking help.
“People are reluctant to seek support and services because asking for help means admitting there’s a substance-use issue that’s going on, and the stigma that surrounds opioid addiction is sometimes insur- mountable,” she said, adding that stigma isn’t a one- way street. “We’re trying to get people connected, but we face barriers all the time. People are reluctant to hire somebody with an history of opioid addic- tion; people are reluctant to house somebody with a
zation service to an intensive, four-week, outpatient program that teaches skills ranging from emotional regulation to mindfulness to dealing with triggers. “It’s not one-size-fits-all here at all. We have all these programs, and patients can really fit themselves into what they need at any given time and move through the services depending on where they are.”
The state has been aggressive with programming as well, expanding substance-use-disorder treatment and overdose-prevention initiatives since the start
Please see Opioids, page 13
People are reluctant to hire somebody with an history of opioid addiction; people are reluctant to house
somebody with a history of opioid addiction, in lots of ways that aren’t based in reality, but based in fear, based in discrimination, based in stigma.”
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