Business Spotlight: Rehabilitation program faces tough balancing act

Balancing the needs of a business with the needs of the community is a tough job. Just ask Mark Beas, program director for the Center for Addictions in Springfield.

The Center for Addictions, which opened in 1984, provides drug testing, outpatient rehabilitation services, community outreach seminars, awareness and education classes, smoking cessation programs and other services to people throughout southwest Missouri.

"Many of our patients come here because of where we're located," Beas said. "We're part of Cox Medical Center North, which is near the Commercial Street District, the Missouri Hotel, the Victory Mission, the Salvation Army and other service organizations."

Sigma House of Springfield, which provides detoxification, residential and outpatient treatment, also draws patients from this area. However, many patients particularly those who have been through detox before prefer to receive their treatment at Cox Medical Center North, according to Beas.

"Cox North is the only place in town that offers medical detoxification," Beas said. "People who've been through detox before know how tough it is to go cold turkey. A medical detox isn't as rough, and the patient is monitored for medical complications for a two- to five-day period, depending on their age and how long they've been using."

Occasionally, Sigma House will refer a person to Cox North for medical detox. When that happens, Cox North is reimbursed by the Missouri Department of Mental Health, which also funds Sigma House.

However, if a patient checks into Cox North directly, the hospital will contact the individual's insurance company, Medicare or Medicaid, if applicable. When these funding sources aren't available, the hospital often ends up absorbing the treatment cost, Beas said.

Following detox, Dr. Mark Carlson, the medical director, evaluates and refers patients to the Center for Addictions. The Center for Addictions receives these referrals from Carlson as part of a service of Burrell Behavorial Health, which is a division of Cox Health Systems. In fact, Carlson not only monitors patients' physical condition, he also monitors them after they make the transition to an outpatient therapy program.

Not all patients who complete medical detox go on to attend an outpatient therapy program. According to Beas, 600 to 700 people go through a medical detox at Cox North each year, but less than half go on to get outpatient therapy.

"It's all voluntary," Beas said. "We rarely treat patients who are ordered by the court to come here and attend one of our programs."

Some of the patients who complete a medical detox at Cox North have a mental illness as well as a drug or alcohol addiction. According to Beas, these "dual-diagnosis" patients often become addicted to drugs or alcohol because they are more likely to self-medicate. Other dual-diagnosis patients develop a mental illness or other physical problem due to prolonged substance abuse.

Contrary to public perception, most programs for people with addictions now are provided on an outpatient basis.

According to Beas, not many insurance companies will pay for a 30-day residential treatment program, which was standard a few years ago. Instead, treatment facilities like the Center for Addictions offer individualized outpatient treatment programs, which stress developing better coping skills and accepting personal responsibility. Fifteen staff members at the Center for Addictions, some of whom have completed a recovery program themselves, work with patients to help them beat their addictions.

"Approximately 35 percent to 40 percent of the people who start a program at the Center for Addictions complete it," Beas said. "Two-thirds of those people stick with their program, which gives us a total success rate of about 25 percent to 30 percent. That may not sound like a lot, but those numbers are in line with the success rate of people who must manage other chronic conditions, such as diabetes."

Although private insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid compensate the Center for Addictions for the treatment it provides to patients, making ends meet is often a struggle, and adding new programs and services is difficult.

"We're always looking for additional ways to meet the needs of individuals and the community," Beas said. "We'd like to start an eating disorder program because there's a great need for that right now in Springfield."

Center for Addictions

Year founded: 1984

Owner's name: Cox Health Systems, Center for Addictions

Address and phone number: 1423 N. Jefferson Ave., Springfield 65802; 269-2273