MORGANTOWN — Deana Morrow, president of the Hope Hill Sobering Center Board of Directors, said that as of Dec. 16, the facility had served nine clients in just over two months since opening.
But efforts are underway to not only increase community awareness of the facility but also its viability as a destination for EMS transport in appropriate situations.
The roughly 5,100-square-foot facility operates between 8 p.m.- 8 a.m. Thursday through Saturday on the first floor of Hazel’s House of Hope.
Its purpose is to serve as an alternative to jail or the emergency room for intoxicated adults. It’s a place where individuals can recover from the effects of drugs and/or alcohol and also be connected to resources, if needed.
But it’s not a hospital, and that’s complicating matters.
Mon EMS Executive Director Forest Weyen explained that the rules and regulations for EMS providers were written at a time when a hospital was the only destination for an ambulance.
“Transportation to a hospital worked for decades, but in the last 20-plus years the healthcare system has realized that an Emergency Department is not the appropriate place for every type of injury or illness,” he explained
To that end, Mon EMS plans to go to the Medical Policy and Care Committee — the primary policy-making and advisory body concerning medical issues involving the EMS system — to request a waiver or permission for a pilot program that would allow Mon EMS to transport patients identified as candidates for the sobering center to Hope Hill instead of a local emergency room.
“The MPCC is always looking for ways to evolve EMS care in the state, while also ensuring that the public is not taking any unnecessary risks. We are working closely with the MPCC in order to help get this program off of the ground,” Mon EMS Medical Director Dr. Michael Shukis said.
Weyen explained that Medicare/Medicaid as well as most private insurers historically only pay if EMS agencies take patients to a hospital.
“For Mon EMS, with the recent passage of the levy, this is less of a concern for us. We believe that providing this transportation to the sobering center, at least on the volumes we expect, falls right in line with what the levy was supposed to do,” he said. “Other counties do not have that safety net, and are providing a free service at a loss.”
Morrow said the sobering center board is also working with local law enforcement and WVU as well as EMS.
In addition, concerned friends and family can drop people off at the center, though calling ahead is encouraged (304-827-1171).
“This is a first-of-its-kind service for this area and for the state, so it will take time and constant effort to build-in the sobering center as a low-cost community response to addressing the personal, social, and economic impact of intoxication and substance misuse,” Morrow said.
