A Mobile area support group for military veterans is working to expand substance abuse treatment. Veterans Recovery Resources is working to raise just over two million dollars. The money will go toward building a substance abuse residential treatment center. The group opened its outpatient clinic in Mobile in November of 2018. Executive Director John Kilpatrick says the facility has served more than four hundred service members, veterans, first responders and their families.
“The outpatient clinic, which is interdisciplinary, trauma informed care, is where we provide primary care or mental health services, physical therapy and occupational therapy, We take all of that and integrate our very unique approach to peer support,” he said. “We have veteran peers who are in their own recovery that work alongside our clinicians to make sure that we deliver what the folks need and what they're looking for."
A reported fifty percent of U.S. military veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorders or some type of substance abuse. Kilpatrick says a specific amount of money needs to be raised to make the center a reality.
“We have set out to do a $6.5 million historic renovation of that building to create an eight bed medically monitored detox capability,” he said. “There will be 16 beds for inpatient residential treatment of a co-occurring substance use disorder and other mental health issues. We'll have 20 beds for supervised housing for folks who are waiting to get into treatment."
The new substance abuse center will work alongside the main Veterans Recovery Resource clinic. Once finished, the new facility is expected to create fifty five jobs and a $3,500,000 payroll.
