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NEWS FROM
CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE
July 8, 2009
Cambridge Health Alliance Offers Innovative Treatment for Opioid Addiction
Cambridge, Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Medford, Revere, Somerville,
MA...Are you concerned about a loved one's or your own opioid
drug use? Summer represents a time of outdoor activities. Yet, for
many individuals and their families, addiction prevents them from
enjoying these activities. The Opioid Addiction and Family Project
may be able to help.
The Opioid Addiction and Family Project is a program designed to
help adults addicted to opioids, chemical substances commonly used
for pain relief, such as heroin or oxycodone. The Project is a study
conducted by researchers at Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) and
Harvard Medical School to examine if adding family counseling to
individual counseling and recovery medication improves treatment
outcomes.
"We are very pleased to be able to offer this innovative treatment
option to people suffering from opioid addiction," said Mark
Albanese, MD, CHA's Director of Addiction Services. "We are
making inroads in a number of communities plagued by opioid abuse
and have been able to help many people stop excessive drug use and
get their lives back on track."
Adults seeking help for an opioid addiction may be eligible for
the program if they are between 21 and 65 years old and live with
a family member. That family member may be a spouse, intimate partner,
parent, grandparent, sibling, or adult child. All participants will
receive free individual counseling, and half of all participants
will also receive free family counseling. The counseling will consist
of 32 sessions total over the course of 4-5 months.
Additionally, all participants will receive free Naltrexone medication.
Naltrexone is an opiate blocker approved by the Food and Drug Administration
for the treatment of opioid dependence which has been shown to improve
treatment outcomes. Treatment and counseling sessions will take
place at CHA's Central Street Health Center in Somerville, Mass.
For more information, please visit www.cha.harvard.edu/opioid or
call the Opioid Addiction and Family Project at Cambridge Health
Alliance at (617) 591-6055.
Cambridge Health Alliance is an innovative, award-winning
health system that provides high quality care in Cambridge, Somerville,
and Boston's metro-north communities. It includes three hospital
campuses, a network of primary care and specialty practices, the
Cambridge Public Health Dept., and the Network Health plan. CHA
is a Harvard Medical School teaching affiliate and is also affiliated
with Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard School of Dental Medicine,
and Tufts University School of Medicine. Visit us online at www.challiance.org.
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Media Contact
David Cecere
Media Relations Manager
Phone: 617-503-8428
Cell: 617-921-9613
Pager: 617-546-1879
dcecere@challiance.org
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