In a bold move to combat the opioid crisis through evidence-based, medical treatment, the Health Care District of Palm Beach County, JFK Medical Center and the Palm Beach County Commission unveiled an innovative public-private partnership on February 5, 2020, officially opening a one-of-a-kind Addiction Stabilization Unit within JFK Medical Center’s North Campus in West Palm Beach.
“From the time a patient suffering from addiction is first treated by fire rescue personnel, to their arrival at this Addiction Stabilization Unit, to the follow-up plan for long-term recovery, the patient is the focus of an extraordinary team of health care providers,” said Darcy J. Davis, Health Care District CEO in her remarks at the ribbon-cutting event. “That team is the result of another groundbreaking team – a public-private partnership that has created a program unique in Florida and one of very few in the U.S.”
Over 350 patients have received specialized care since the unit opened its doors on October 21, 2019. Fire rescue agencies in municipalities throughout the county have adopted protocols allowing them to bypass the closest emergency room to transport overdose patients directly to the centralized facility. For patients arriving after an overdose, medication assisted treatment (MAT) is provided within the first few hours of arrival to take away the cravings, minimize withdrawal symptoms and increase the probability the patient will comply with a longer-term treatment plan after discharge.
Once a patient is stabilized and opts to explore long-term treatment options, medical staff recommends the care best suited for the patient. Many of the patients from the unit have received a warm hand-off to the Health Care District’s MAT program, which is conveniently located in an outpatient clinic adjacent to the hospital. There patients are seen by a team of psychiatrists, primary care physicians, counselors specialized in treating addiction and other licensed professional services, including medication assisted treatment (Buprenorphine, Naltrexone and Vivitrol), individual and group therapy, psychiatric services, individualized care coordination, pharmacy services and links to other health and social services.“This project is our attempt to medicalize addiction and treat it like other medical illnesses,” said Belma AndriÄ, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer, VP and Executive Director of Clinical Services for the Health Care District. “We took a public health approach and set out to change the way care is provided for this very complex, relapsing, lifelong and life-threatening illness for which treatment resources are scarce, fragmented and not very well defined by national medical associations.”
For Palm Beach County Commissioner Melissa McKinlay, the grand opening took on a personal meaning. The unit will display a statue of an angel in memory of Tasha McCraw, the daughter of her former chief of staff, Johnnie Easton, who died of an overdose in 2016. Easton, who attended the event, said her daughter would be proud that those who are at the lowest point in their life can visit the unit and not feel ashamed to ask for help.“What Tasha loved … is helping other people,” Commissioner McKinlay said in her remarks. “As she’s looking down upon us from heaven, she will be helping other people, too.”
In front of a standing-room only crowd, county leaders praised the initiative as a national model.
“This most importantly will save lives, but it also demonstrates that Palm Beach County continues to be at the forefront in fighting the opioid epidemic,” said State Attorney Dave Aronberg.
“We want to ensure that for all of our residents here in Palm Beach County, if they need assistance for substance use disorder, we have a mechanism for them to receive quality care,” said Verdenia Baker, County Administrator.
