The Free Clinic of Culpeper launched a peer recovery program in May. The grant-supported program aims to help individuals with substance use disorders, in partnership with a regional community services organization. WMRA’s Ayse Pirge reports.
. She says the Virginia Association of Free and Charitable Clinics–
TAMMY LAGRAFFE: Helped get this grant because there were a couple of free clinics down state, Bradley Free Clinic being the main one, who designed this HOPE Initiative peer recovery program for their clinic.
The HOPE Initiative began in 2016 in Roanoke, and allows individuals with substance use disorders to receive support from certified peer recovery specialists. A peer recovery specialist is someone with lived experience in challenges related to substance use, mental health, and co-occurring issues.
Another clinic in our area, Shenandoah Community Health Clinic in Woodstock, offers the HOPE Initiative model as well.
LaGraffe says that their clinic works closely with Encompass Community Supports, a Rappahannock-area community services board, and that relationship predated the peer recovery program.
LAGRAFFE: We started working together since I’ve been here. I’ve been here six and a half years. Our patients, we refer to their services for behavioral health, mental health, substance abuse.
LaGraffe says the grant will probably run through the end of this year, but there is hope it can be extended.
LAGRAFFE: We have a peer who is stationed here two days a week. And she can see our patients. We’ve also had people reach out too because we’ve been doing some outreach with some flyers and give-aways with the information on them. So, we’ve even had people from the community reach out, who aren’t even our patients.
Katie Lindsay is the behavioral health operations director at Encompass Community Supports. She says they have their own established peer recovery program in addition to their outpatient clinical settings.
KATIE LINDSAY: In the town of Culpeper, we have the peer drop-in center, called the S.E.E. Center, which is kind of our no-barrier facility where anybody who needs any kind of support can go in. … So, that is kind of one of the first steps for people who are interested in our services is working with our peers.
Lindsay says the benefit of a peer specialist–
LINDSAY: Is that they do not have to abide by the same clinical rules, you know, like a therapist would have to follow. They can relate to people, they can share their experiences. … It doesn’t have quite the formality that somebody seeking treatment might have.
She says this helps break down barriers for those who need services.
