Mind Springs Health detox facility reports success
New withdrawal management unit in Glenwood Springs aided 46 clients in first 3.5 months
PRESS RELEASE
October 24, 2024
Mind Springs Health’s new withdrawal management unit in Glenwood Springs opened on June 17 and staff has experienced successful outcomes while helping clients seeking to end their addictions. The new facility provides services for Garfield County clients, who historically needed to travel to West Springs Hospital in Grand Junction for treatment.
Monday, October 21, Hans Lutgring, Mind Springs Health regional outreach director, provided the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) with program updates on their new Withdrawal Management facility in Glenwood Springs, operated by Mind Springs Health. It has seen nearly 80 percent of clients willing to engage in follow-up services, and Mind Springs staff express that there is wide support from the local municipalities and hospitals, as well as Garfield County, to help ensure the program’s success.
“We have a pretty amazing statistic as far as success with follow-up appointments post participation in withdrawal management and it’s more than double the national average for care,” Lutgring said.
Since opening, most clients have come to the withdrawal management unit via walk-in for a more direct route to treatment that is less expensive than going to an emergency room directly.
The majority of clients have been from the area, with 10 coming from Rifle; eight from Aspen; seven apiece from Glenwood Springs and Carbondale; six from Silt; four from Snowmass; one from New Castle; and 13 who were visiting the area from other locations, Mind Springs Health reported.
“Those conversations in the community are working,” Lutgring said. “You don’t have to go to the hospital to get medically cleared. You can show up at the door and we’ll be able to do the medical clearance there.”
Mind Springs Health Substance Abuse Treatment Director Traci Harris told the board that since the withdrawal management unit opened in June, it served 46 clients through the end of September.
“We’ve have had some success and are now fully staffed with our medical team,” she said. “We established the program with traveling nurses, but by November, we should be fully staffed with local employees. That’s a big success for us and we do have a fully staffed case management team. They are the ones who provide a lot of the outreach services in the community and connect folks with the next level of care.”
Harris added that Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) holds its meetings with clients and noted that the withdrawal management unit is focused on relapse prevention as treatment.
Mind Springs Health launched secure transport in mid-August, providing travel between Garfield County hospitals and the Glenwood facility and West Springs Hospital. Harris added that roughly 75 percent of clients have insurance, with more than half being from Medicaid.
“The committee that’s been working for the last five years to get us to this point had discussed making sure that we offered services that didn’t just end at the door,” Lutgring said. “Then you add the mobile recovery team component, and they have the ability to connect into the community and get people connected to those resources.
“We provide that warm handshake back to the community, whether that’s outpatient treatment services, a follow-up, or going directly into residential services,” he added. “It’s a less-abrupt treatment model, which we’ve always prioritized.”
In May, Garfield County reaffirmed its support for Mind Springs Health, approving a $49,500 grant toward operations and the cost of care for Garfield County residents. Garfield County also allocated $100,000 to Mind Springs Health in 2024 toward funding withdrawal management services, as part of a partnership with other local entities. The county’s $100,000 contribution comes from Colorado Opioid Settlement funds.
“It seems like everything is getting better and better and better,” said Commissioner Mike Samson. “We’re getting better at dealing with this. I don’t know if there’s ever going to be a perfect solution, but it’s reassuring to me to see that things are getting better and the people who need help are getting help.”