Innovative Initiatives

December 17, 2019 | Alcohol, Controlled Substances, Innovative Initiatives, Treatments

Opened on Oct. 1, 2018, the mission of the Austin (Travis County, Texas) Sobering Center is “to enhance public health and public safety by providing an alternative to the emergency room and jail for publicly intoxicated individuals to sober up and, when appropriate, provide a safe environment to initiative recovery.” Only Austin’s first responders (e.g., law enforcement officers and emergency medical technicians) are permitted to bring people under the influence of any substance except PCP to withdraw at the Center....

November 12, 2019 | Criminal Justice, Innovative Initiatives, Treatments

Tennessee Recovery Oriented Compliance Strategy (TN ROCS) was founded in 2013 by Circuit Court Judge O. Duane Slone to work with drug offenders with opioid use disorders (OUDs) who did not qualify for his drug recovery court. The program relies on the practices and principles of drug court, requires fewer resources, and is based on three components: (1) obtaining an accurate screening and assessment and providing a referral to the proper level of treatment for an appropriate period of time; (2) frequent accountability through appropriate levels of supervision; and (3) the knowledge that the judge has power over the participant’s freedom....

October 8, 2019 | Innovative Initiatives, Treatments

Started in 2003, Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) combines primary and specialty care, linking “expert specialty teams” from an academic hub with primary care physicians (PCPs) in local, often rural, communities. This distance education model enables specialists to train and mentor PCPs to care for patients with complex health conditions....