As coronavirus stops AA, NA meetings, people in recovery use virtual space to support one another and prevent isolation
MassLive
Date: 3/27/20
A trailer has been placed outside the Spectrum Health Systems inpatient campus in Westborough to screen incoming patients for signs of COVID-19, which may include fever and a dry cough.
State outpatient program that gives felons intensive counseling, training instead of jail time may expand to Hamilton County
Chattanooga Times Free Press
Date: 12/31/19
NASHVILLE — Hamilton County could be in line for an innovative Tennessee Department of Correction program that puts nonviolent felons struggling with substance abuse or mental health issues through an intensive one-year, three-phase program as an alternative to prison.
‘This place changed my life;’ At this Worcester recovery center, Cassandra Olivencia found a new purpose and her confidence
MassLive
Date: 9/1/19
Cassandra Olivencia was scared the first time she walked in the door.
Years of using heroin and crack had worn down on her. Olivencia was ready to stay sober this time.
Trafficked in Massachusetts: Getting out
WCVB.com
Date: 4/2/19
WORCESTER, Mass. —It's just past noon in Worcester, and a familiar scene is about to play out. A young woman, her clothes dirty, walks Main Street for hours, glancing at passing cars, until one pulls over.
Millbury Methadone Clinic Helping Dispel Neighbors’ Fears
Telegram.com
Date: 11/3/17
MILLBURY - Driving into the parking lot behind the nondescript industrial building at 50 Howe Ave., one would think that, aside from the two security guards, this could just as easily be a trip to the post office or hardware store.
Adults of all ages, dressed for work and going about their business one morning last week, stood politely in line just inside the door, waiting their turn.
Troubleshooting Training: How Three Programs Prepare Volunteers to Mentor People Leaving Prison and Jail
Justice Center
Date: 7/27/17
Staff at the CSG Justice Center talked to three reentry programs with promising training practices about their experiences developing and delivering training to volunteer mentors.
Training mentors to support the reentry population is not an exact science. For many reentry programs that offer mentoring services, the training of mentors is an ever-evolving process that can unfold in challenging and unexpected ways.
After three decades of drug addiction, Robert Brown finally got clean
The Roanoke Times
Date: 7/18/17
Robert Brown was on his way to see his heroin dealer. He was withdrawing and in a hurry. Not paying attention, he made an illegal turn. Blue lights flashed on behind him.
“They’re finally going to get me,” he thought.
As I See It: Recovery’s home court advantage
Telegram & Gazette
Date: 7/2/17
America is in the worst opiate epidemic ever, and our Commonwealth is among the nation’s hardest hit. There were 1,933 confirmed opioid-related deaths in 2016, per the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Put another way, last year opiate addiction claimed the lives of 161 people each month, 37 people each week, and five people each day.
Radio Show Plays Role in Battle Vs. Addiction
Lowell Sun
Date: 6/21/17
CHELMSFORD -- There's strength in seeking help.
That's one of the messages Chelmsford resident Jodi Tarantino hopes to convey as the new host of Airing Addiction, a weekly radio program on WTAG 580 AM in Worcester.
Tarantino, a licensed social worker and program director of residential services at Spectrum Health System Inc.'s Charles J. Faris Recovery Center in Westboro, said she hopes to destigmatize addiction, treatment and behavioral health in general.
As I See It: Kurt Isaacson – Demystifying outpatient addiction treatment centers
Telegram & Gazette
Date: 12/18/16
Simply put, the scope of the current opioid epidemic is staggering. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more people died from drug overdoses last year than in any year on record. And, the number of overdose deaths involving opioids (including prescription opioid pain relievers and heroin), has nearly quadrupled since 1999. No community is immune. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health recently reported that 209 people lost their battle with opioid addiction last year in Worcester County alone. That's 17 people a month or four people each week.
Free “boot camp”: Exercise regimen helps addicts in recovery
Telegram & Gazette
Date: 10/09/16
WORCESTER – Brian Keith, a 37-year-old city resident and banker who's recovering from crack cocaine and alcohol addictions, said he hadn't worked out in three months.
Spectrum Health names new president and CEO
Worcester Business Journal Online
Date: 4/26/16
Worcester's Spectrum Health Systems has named Kurt Isaacson as the organization's new president and CEO, replacing Charles “Chuck” Faris as he steps into retirement.
Opioid crisis creating nonprofit demand
Worcester Business Journal Online
Date: 2/15/15
When Kelly McCausland was teaching yoga and mindfulness at rehabilitation facilities, she had a lot of interactions with patients who believed in their sobriety, only to succumb to their addiction months or even weeks later.
New rehab facility caters to high-end patients
The Boston Globe
Date: 3/22/15
Mornings start with yoga and meditation. Then there's breakfast, the first of three gourmet meals a day. After dinner, a massage helps to calm the mind and muscles before bed.
Spectrum’s Faris retiring as president, CEO in Worcester
Worcester Magazine
Date: 2/17/16
Chuck Faris joined Spectrum Health Systems as a counselor in 1971, not long after the start of a new decade. Now, 45 years later, and a little more than halfway through the second decade of a new century, he is calling an end to a career that saw him rise all the way to the top.
