With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the United States—and the rest of the world—it’s time to evaluate your addiction treatment center’s emergency response to the public health crisis. Today we’ll talk about the top 5 responses to the pandemic that we’ve heard about from addiction treatment centers across the country and why your center might want to consider implementing some—or all—of these ideas for the duration of the crisis. 

Beef Up Intensive Outpatient 

SAMHSA has recommended that all addiction treatment centers try to track patients into an intensive outpatient option whenever possible for as long as COVID-19 is active in the community. With the exception of those high-risk patients for whom inpatient is necessary (i.e. suicidal patients), your facility should be doing everything it can to put a high priority on placing new patients into intensive outpatient for the time being. 

The silver lining? Studies have actually shown that there is a negligible difference in outcomes for inpatient versus outpatient, which is good news for your patients and for your outcomes data. 

For addiction treatment centers that already have a robust intensive outpatient option, this course of action is a no-brainer. You may need to re-direct staff resources into intensive outpatient as your residential programs phase down. Plan accordingly.

Overwhelmed by making such a dramatic change? Remember that this crisis will most likely not be resolved in a matter of weeks or months. Experts project that social distancing requirements will be necessary to varying degrees for many, many months—likely in waves until a viable vaccine is made available. Count on the novel coronavirus dramatically impacting the way you do business for at least a year.  

Find New Ways to do Meetings 

The way you do meetings at your addiction treatment center needs to change if it hasn’t already. The alterations you need to make to meetings will depend on your location, the extent of community transmission in your area, and the public health recommendations being made by your local government. 

Here’s a list of some alterations we’ve see to meeting protocol: 

• Continuing to do in-person meetings but limiting the size of those meetings 

• Attempting to conduct “socially distant” meetings where attendees sit in the same room with a certain amount of spacing between each participant 

• Cancelling in-person meetings and making all meetings digital 

• Banning residents from attending meetings outside the facility 

Again, the meeting modifications you choose should be based on local public health guidelines. If you do choose to take all meetings digital, many treatment centers and recovery programs are using Zoom to host meetings. Be sure you read up on how to hold secure meetings on the platform to prevent abuse from bad actors.

Community meetings (AA, NA, etc) are being offered digitally all around the country. Here’s a helpful list SAMHSA compiled about all of the different types of meetings being offered online right now. 

Dig into Telehealth 

Not offering telehealth at your facility? Now is the time to start. 

Select a telehealth platform that’s designed for mental health, quickly train your counselors and clinicians, and start offering video or phone appointments to your patients—ASAP. 

Doing so will not only provide your staff and patients with crucial social distancing options, but it will also help your staff streamline services, improving efficiency and productivity. 

Develop a Smart Work From Home Strategy

We all know that it’s important to have staff work from home whenever possible right now. Making it happen can be a challenge without the right technology. 

At BehaveHealth, we’re helping addiction treatment centers with the hardware, software and processes they need to develop a work from home strategy that’s effective and secure. 

We’re dedicated to helping the addiction treatment industry navigate the COVID-19 crisis. That’s why we’re offering a complimentary “Developing a Work From Home Technology Strategy” consultation session for any addiction treatment center that needs it. Sign up for your free consultation today. 

Educate Patients About the Health Risks of Coronavirus

People with SUD are more vulnerable to COVID-19 than the general population. The prevalence of pre-existing conditions and the rates of cigarette smoking are high in patients with SUD. People with SUD are more likely to live in substandard or crowded living conditions, which puts them at elevated risk for the ill effects of the virus. 

For all of these reasons, it is especially important to educate your patients about the risks of COVID-19 and what they can do to protect themselves. Modelling behaviors such as frequent and thorough hand washing and sanitizing high-touch areas at your addiction treatment center is a good place to start. When you explain the additional precautions and safety measures you are asking patients to take at your facility, don’t just present them as rules. Instead, explain the rationale behind the precautions. Giving patients a “why” is much more effective than just telling them to do something. Underscoring that these measures not only protect them but protect those around them helps patients feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves, which is an important part of addiction recovery.  

Staying Organized Will Help Your Response 

Now more than ever, BehaveHealth is here for addiction treatment centers, providing custom, all-in-one software solutions to the industry’s most complex problems. Learn more about our cloud-based system or claim your free trial today.