Sussex County addiction treatment center officially open
GEORGETOWN, Del. – A new state funded treatment center officially opened its doors in Sussex County, Monday. It’s a clinic that officials hope will bridge the treatment gap, when it comes to fighting addiction and mental illness.
“We need more resources. We need more help,” says Steven Tschirschnitz, a Georgetown resident.
Georgetown residents are reacting to the news of a new treatment clinic opening its doors.
“We do need help. A lot of us really do. So you don’t end up repeating to where we have OD’s,” says Amelia Miller, a Georgetown Resident.
The state funded Sussex County Bridge Clinic, inside the Thurman Adams Center, will focus on assessment and referral to services.
“We are more, like I said, the bridge that would bridge the gap between the need for services and getting someone to the services,” says Greg Valentine, the Director of Behavioral Health Services for the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAM).
And the services are free, regardless of someone’s insurance status.
“We’ve already addressed the issue of inability to pay for treatment and that the state will pay will cover the cost of treatment,” says Valentine.
Besides covering cost, the clinic will also offer transportation which locals say is vital to successfully overcoming addiction.
“I can’t make it there all the time. I don’t have money, a bus pass or things like that. So it will benefit me and everyone else that’s here and we don’t have that in Georgetown so it’s a good thing we are getting that,” says Adam Miller, a Georgetown resident.
And officials admit that transportation is one of the biggest challenges for treatment in the county.
“This is a more rural county than up north so you don’t have the same public transportation options as you might have in a more urban or suburban type county,” says Valentine.
It’s a clinic that officials hope is just what the area needs. “Make sure that if people would otherwise fall through the cracks they have a place that would catch them before they fall through the cracks,” says Valentine.
Clinic directors tell 47 ABC they hope to be able to prescribe medication there in the future. They’re also working on getting bilingual staff so that everyone in the area has the right help.
The Sussex County Bridge Clinic, which is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, is available to all Delaware residents at the Thurman Adams State Service Center, 546 S. Bedford St., Georgetown.
For more information, call the Sussex County Bridge Clinic at 302-515-3310.
