An Epidemic Takes Hold and We Answer the Call
Growing up, Ben Roche struggled with anxiety and depression. Over the years, he learned to mask his true feelings to his family and friends while excelling in school and sports.
Ben began experimenting with drugs and alcohol, and within a year it snowballed. When Ben started taking heroin, his life spiraled out of control.
“When I finally decided to reach out for help, there were so many hands reaching back out to me,” he said.
Ben is proof the opioid epidemic has expanded well beyond the inner cities — it is impacting young and old, men and women, rich and poor. He is also proof that the Hartford HealthCare Behavioral Health Network’s efforts, including the MATCHTM (Medication Assisted Treatment, Close to Home) program, are working. Ben is now back in college and hopes to one day help others fighting the disease.
Overdose-related deaths from opioid and heroin reached new heights in the past year, as Connecticut and the rest of the nation saw skyrocketing numbers of people falling victim to addiction.
The HHC BHN responded to the crisis with great urgency, expanding resources and access to care through the MATCH program, which added new outpatient facilities in Cheshire, Avon and Meriden, and renovated existing facilities in Groton, Mansfield, and Dayville. There are now eight Rushford and Natchaug MATCH locations in Connecticut, with plans for more. Several locations treat teenagers as young as 16.MATCH includes treatment with medications, such as Suboxone, as well as related services including detoxification, counseling and integrative medicine. An accompanying ad campaign has generated hundreds of phone calls to the MATCH hotline since its launch in March.
In addition, BHN experts and leaders took every opportunity to educate our communities about the crisis, appearing frequently in the news media and at community forums across the state; educating physicians on the latest best prescribing practices; and working closely with state and national legislators to draft and support legislation meant to address the problem.
With expertise and support from the BHN, the state approved new laws that would make it harder for those addicted to prescription pain medication to “doctor shop” as a way to obtain opioids, while another new law expanded access to Naloxone, also known as Narcan, a drug that can help reverse the symptoms of an overdose.
Despite many negative media reports about the opioid epidemic, the BHN’s focus has been on hope and recovery. In fact, recovering clients whose lives have been transformed by the care they received within the Behavioral Health Network were the focus of a special half-hour television special produced in partnership with the Hartford HealthCare News Service.
“Hope After Heroin: Stories of Recovery” aired on NBC-CT, and a link to the show as well as a listing of resources and information on addiction and treatment services can be found at www.hhchope.org.
“We are enormously proud of the work we are doing to lead the effort against this epidemic of opioid and heroin abuse,” said Patricia Rehmer, president of the BHN. “We believe these stories of recovery offer hope and will motivate people to seek the help they need to overcome their addictions and help them lead normal lives again.”