Thursday, August 30, 2007

Needle Exchange Reaches 100th Participant

Today the Delaware Needle Exchange Program signed up its 100th participant. Over 700 syringes have been exchanged since startup back in February.

Congrats to Basha, Rochelle, and the staff on this milestone.

Friday, August 17, 2007

BCI To Open Women’s Residential Program

Brandywine Counseling will be opening Delaware’s first Women and Children’s Residential Treatment Program. The program will be located in Ellendale and will serve up to 15 women and 20 children per year from throughout the state. Funding for the program was awarded by the Delaware Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health.

This residential program will fill a critical treatment gap in the state by improving substance abuse treatment outcomes for mothers with co-occurring disorders. Women who were not able to engage in treatment because of their parenting responsibilities will now be able to bring their children with them to treatment.

The BCI Residential Program will provide a safe, therapeutic environment where women and their children will learn skills for healthy lifestyles. Integrated services will include substance abuse treatment, mental health treatment, medical care, trauma services, GED services, employment readiness, parenting education, child care, and social activities. Children will receive assessments, developmental and therapeutic counseling, health care, health education, and prevention services.

The variable length of stay residential program is designed as a 9-12 month program. It will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week and offer therapeutic activities daily. We expect to begin accepting clients in November.

BCI is collaborating with a multidisciplinary provider network including Delmarva Clergy United in Social Action (DCUSA), and La Red Health Center. Together we have a strong presence in the community that will ensure community acceptance and support.

Brandywine Counseling is a non-profit addiction treatment provider with more than twenty years’ history of engaging chronic drug users, retaining them for successful outcomes in treatment, and referring them to aftercare. BCI is licensed by the State of Delaware and accredited by the Joint Commission. Our past experience serving women and their children, those with co-occurring disorders, and other challenging populations prepares us to meet the goals of this project and produce meaningful results. This program promises to have far reaching positive effects on Delaware’s women, infants, children, and families as well as on the child welfare system and health care system.

For more information, please contact Shay Lipshitz at 302-856-4700.

Live and Work At the Beach - BCI is now hiring for all positions in this new program. Visit our jobs page to learn more.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Mosaic Mural Is Finished!

Now when you walk in the door to Brandywine Counseling, you’ll literally see addiction growing into recovery.

A tree made up of tiles and glass with treatment-related words and phrases written on them covers the wall in the entrance hall of the Lancaster Center. The mosaic mural is an attractive and inspirational addition, one that our staff, clients, and visitors will appreciate for years to come. We’d like to send a big thanks out to the artist, Emma Glencross, who volunteered her time to do this mural for us.

Emma truly went above and beyond our expectations for this project. She spent several hours a day over two weeks to single-handedly create this original artwork. This is in addition to meeting with staff to plan the concept, collecting all the materials she used, and firing the tiles in her pottery kiln. It was a pleasure to work with Emma. She not only has great artistic talent, but great dedication to serving others.

Our volunteers really do make a difference here at Brandywine. They have lots of fun too. We’ve got lots more projects available, so if you’re looking to give back to your community, check out our list here.

Click the photos to view full size.









Friday, August 3, 2007

How to Overcome Incentives’ Bad Rap?

Jason Schwartz at Addiction and Recovery News posed some interesting questions about the use of incentives in treatment. He asks: If incentives help people stay in treatment, but the public is against it, is it the right thing to do?

It’s easy to dismiss incentives as a bribe or a quick fix. With our new program here at Brandywine, it’s been a challenge for even our own counselors to grasp the concept. The point is that we want clients to stick with treatment, regardless of the reason. Whether someone is self-motivated or they just want to win a gift certificate, we want them to stay, because the longer they stay, the more likely they will succeed. There is no wrong reason.

We came up with a slogan, “Participation = Celebration,” that really encapsulates the meaning of our incentives and will hopefully stay with our clients (and staff) after they hear it a number of times. I would also rely on this phrase to explain our program to the public. A little education can go a long way. Having said that, the best way to turn skeptics into supporters is with data showing improved outcomes. In our case, we’re still waiting to see this.

Jason goes on to ask, “Why are we not talking about this kind of intervention with non-compliant patients in cardiac care units, diabetes clinics, weight loss programs, etc.? Is it because we respect them too much to offer gift certificates for following their treatment plan?”

I have yet to hear that any of our clients have felt insulted at being offered a reward. I’ve been told that incentives programs have been proven to improve treatment outcomes even when the clients say the incentives didn’t make a difference. The same might just be true in other settings.