SEPTEMBER 2, 2022 – As John M. toured the newly-expanded Mangonia Park clinic, he reflected on how far he has come since a heroin overdose four years ago led him to the Health Care District of Palm Beach County’s outpatient addiction treatment program.
“I had nothing, I was living on the streets. I had lost my family, my kids,” John shared in front of a packed room of community leaders and partners attending the clinic’s open house on August 24th. “Today I am so super happy to be on this Medication Assisted Treatment (M.A.T) program, you have no idea. Just the little things like having a driver’s license, a bank account. I have the love of my beautiful family back. I thank you guys so very much.”
The Mangonia Park clinic is now located at 2051 45th Street, Suite 300 in medical building A and is triple the size of its prior office. The modern clinic features five exam rooms, three therapy rooms, a conference room for group therapy, a private “Chill Room” for patients to shower and relax before receiving treatment, and a pharmacy where patients, many of whom lack transportation, can pick up their medication. The “one-stop-shop” approach includes primary and psychiatric care, individual and group mental health counseling, substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and pharmacy services, all under one roof.
“The goal is that we treat addiction no different than any other illness,” said Belma Andrić, MD, MPH, VP and Chief Medical Officer. “At the same time, we eliminate any barriers like a lack of insurance. Everyone is treated here regardless of their ability to pay.”
“We’re proud our addiction treatment program is having a meaningful impact and that the state of Florida is now replicating it in other counties across the state,” said Darcy J. Davis, Chief Executive Officer of the Health Care District of Palm Beach County. “This clinic is expanding access to care to meet the needs of our community.”
The clinic is located on the same campus as HCA Florida JFK North Hospital’s Addiction Stabilization Unit (ASU). A patient can enter the program through the ASU’s ER once they’re treated for the most acute stage of their illness, or as a walk-in with no appointment needed. Before patients are discharged from the ASU following the most acute stage of their illness, Health Care District recovery coaches are there to guide them to the Mangonia Park clinic and stay by their side for their outpatient treatment. This continuum of care gives patients access to quality outpatient addiction treatment on an ongoing basis for as long as it’s needed.
“Our relationship has continued to evolve in the last three years and the program has been amazing,” said Ashley Vertuno, CEO of HCA Florida JFK North Hospital. “We have treated more than 4,000 patients that have come through that door (at the ASU), so this collaboration has really been very successful.”
Open house attendees enjoyed a sneak peak of one of the Health Care District’s two new LifeTrans ground ambulances. The ambulances respond to hospital ER requests to transfer SUD patients who need specialized addiction care to the ASU or the Mangonia Park Clinic.
Among the dignitaries at the event were Florida Representative Kelly Skidmore, Palm Beach County Commissioner Melissa McKinlay, Commissioner Mack Bernard, Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg and County Administrator Verdenia Baker. During the event, Darcy Davis presented Commissioner McKinlay with a memento recognizing her advocacy of evidence-based addiction treatment in the county, referring to it as Commissioner McKinlay’s “passion project.”
From left: Courtney Phillips, MD, Health Care District Director of Behavioral Health; Belma Andrić, MD, MPH, Health Care District VP and Chief Medical Officer; Verdenia Baker, Palm Beach County Administrator; Palm Beach County Commissioner Melissa McKinlay; Darcy J. Davis, Health Care District CEO; Ashley Vertuno, HCA Florida JFK North Hospital CEO; and Steven Keehn, DO, HCA Florida JFK North Hospital ED Medical Director
“I can’t tell you what it means to walk in here,” said Commissioner McKinlay of the expanded clinic. “My mother passed away and I wasn’t able to say goodbye to her because of her addiction. It’s so personal to me. I don’t want anybody to have to go through that.”
For more information about the Health Care District’s outpatient addiction treatment program, please call 561-642-1000. Click here to watch a Palm Beach County TV Channel 20 video presentation of the open house event: https://discover.pbcgov.org/publicaffairs/Pages/Local_Programs.aspx?videoid=CH20/CH20Presents/2022/20220829-PBC-%20Presents-Health-Care%20District-Mangonia-Park-Open-House
About the Health Care District
The Health Care District of Palm Beach County provides primary medical care, dental services and COVID-19 testing for adults and children at the C. L. Brumback Primary Care Clinics, health coverage programs for eligible uninsured residents, a pharmacy operation, a nationally-recognized Trauma System, registered nurses in nearly 170 public schools, short and long-term skilled nursing at the 5-star rated Edward J. Healey Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Riviera Beach, and acute care at its teaching hospital, Lakeside Medical Center, which is accredited by The Joint Commission and serves the rural Glades’ communities.
About the C. L. Brumback Primary Care Clinics
This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number H80CS25684 for Health Center Cluster in the award amount of $7,278,563. Of the total project, 83% is financed with nongovernmental sources. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government. The C. L. Brumback Primary Care Clinics were granted Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) deeming status effective January 1, 2022.
