SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – A much-needed resource will soon come online at Father Joe’s Villages. Nearly four dozen detox beds will be coming online near the end of the month to help those battling substance abuse.
“My own experience, 9 years ago, I needed detox myself,” Mary Jo Scarpetti, the Clinic Director of the Villages Health Center at Father Joe’s Villages, said.
As the health clinic director with Father Joe’s Villages, Scarpetti knows what the non-profit’s clients are going through.
“I had a problem with prescribed medication. The symptoms of withdrawal really kept me using because the pain was so intense and the stigma of admitting that I had a problem was too much for me,” Scarpetti said.
But, in about two weeks, a new resource will open to help those who are going through what Scarpetti overcame.
“We're about to open our detox clinic here at our health center,” Deacon Jim Vargas, the President and CEO of Father Joe’s Villages, said.
Vargas and the nonprofit told ABC 10News that the new clinic will open with a ribbon-cutting on September 23rd.
“Through the generosity of our donors, we were able to get the amount of money that we needed, $1.5 million to renovate two of these floors in our Paul Marable Center here,” Vargas said.
There are going to be two sets of bunk beds in each of the 11 rooms at Father Joe’s Village's new detox beds center. So that means they’ll be able to treat 44 people, which goes about 10 to 14 days, depending on the person.
“In San Diego City, in fact, there are 2 MediCal-funded detox beds. And, in the entire county of over 3 million individuals, there's only 78 detox beds that are available,” Megan Partch, the Chief Health Officer at Father Joe’s Villages, said. “So, bringing another 44 beds that are centrally located online is huge.”
Adding more of these beds means more access for when people need them.
“There's a higher likelihood that when somebody says, I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired, I’m ready. Today is the day that we can say great. We're ready to come in. We're here for you,” Partch said.
These beds are for those who don’t have the means to access detox resources, typically those who are or on the verge of becoming homeless.
Vargas said they transitioned their previous traditional shelter beds to these detox beds because of the need for them.
“That about 495 individuals died on the streets in this past year, 283 of whom died from drug overdoses,” Vargas said. “So, the need is dire, and so that's why we decided instead of just having 350 straight shelter beds that we would really focus on detoxification and then recovery.”
Vargas tells me they’ll also have 248 beds for recovery and sober living, connecting people to resources such as healthcare, employment, and case management.
“We'll be able to connect them to anything that they may need during their stay in detox and hopefully to engage them once they transition as well,” Scarpetti said.
Scarpetti told ABC 10News it will be emotional to welcome the first person looking for this kind of help from a program that’s very personal to her.
“I would have saved myself a lot of heartache and trauma, and I’m blessed to be alive, to have the opportunities I have,” Scarpetti said. “But detox would have been critical for me in finding sobriety sooner.”
