By Sherry Larson
People’s Defender
Sunrise Treatment Center’s new location is at 247 CIC Boulevard, West Union, and is a comprehensive outpatient substance use treatment program. Dr. Jeffrey Bill founded Sunrise approximately 16 years ago. According to Dr. Bill, “It started as a simple office where I was prescribing medication to help people with opioid use disorder.” After spending several years learning more about the treatment world, gaining additional experience, and adding more board certifications, Dr. Bill concluded that his simple program needed to expand to more comprehensive services.
Dr. Bill stated, “If they (patients) can’t get complete care at one location, it’s difficult for them to make the true progress they need to live healthier, safer lives.” He worked with a team of individuals who helped him turn Sunrise into a formal outpatient treatment center. The center offers an opiate treatment program. Dr. Bill explained that it’s a concept that has been introduced previously. He used a similar model to a facility that treated patients with methadone but using buprenorphine or suboxone-only treatment. The program was the first of its kind in Ohio.
Sunrise focuses on helping people with opioid use disorder and providing medication-assisted treatment. However, they can also help with other substance use disorders. They provide additional support services like mental health therapy, other prescriptive services, and general medical services. Their outpatient model is structured, well-regulated, and comprehensive.
Christina Jeffery, Clinical Director at Sunrise Treatment Center, reported that the new center in West Union opened a few weeks ago. Jeffery joined Operation Better Together, conducts outreach events, and plans on joining the Adams County Health and Wellness Coalition. She has made several community contacts and is busy networking with Adams County and the surrounding areas.
The Defender asked about some people’s negativity regarding the use of Suboxone. Jeffery shared that, so far, she has not encountered any issues or concerns. She said, “Suboxone has been around long enough where people are more aware and educated on how it acts as opposed to methadone and how treatment effectiveness works over time.”
Dr. Bill explained the difference between being physically or physiologically dependent or addicted. He said, “I’m safe to say that 100% of people being treated with Suboxone will be physically or physiologically dependent on Suboxone because it is an opioid. If you were suddenly without it, you would experience withdrawal symptoms.” He continued that tapering patients off the medication must be done with care and conscientiousness because of the physical and physiologic dependence. Dr. Bill shared, “Addiction is that inappropriate relationship with the substance because it does something that I think is beneficial or exciting. I spend a lot of time thinking about when I will have an opportunity to use it next and where I will be able to acquire this medication – because I want to feel that way again.” He elaborated, “This medication absolutely has a physical or physiologic dependence and an associated withdrawal syndrome if you were to come down off it or suddenly be without it. But it differs from the psychological desire to use the thing and feel its effect because it does something positive, beneficial, or exciting.”
Dr. Bill said, “We are committed to having fully employed professionals as part of our organization.” He continued, “At this point, I think we might have around 75 years’ worth of combined experience in medication-assisted treatment.” The West Union treatment center is one of twelve facilities that Sunrise operates throughout southwest Ohio. He said, “We’re established, reputable, and regulated in every imaginable way.” Jeffery interjects, “Self-regulated along with that – there’s a very high expectation that we will do the right thing even when no one is looking.”
Presently, the center serves about 30 individuals, with more scheduled intakes. Many of those 30 individuals were from Adams County but were treated at the Milford location and now can receive treatment closer to home. Most people are learning about the center through word of mouth. Dr. Bill added that Sunrise makes sure they have a presence on the Internet.
Dr. Bill explained that Sunrise committed to the Adams County community about two and a half years ago when deciding where to locate the next center. He reached out to community leaders like Holly Johnson, Director of Economic and Community Development, who became their primary connection. Johnson helped Dr. Bill work through the process of coming to Adams County. Sunrise studied who was utilizing the Milford location and found that there were over 100 patients that lived within 15 minutes of West Union.
The new Sunrise Treatment Center can accommodate around 350 patients. Dr. Bill communicated that beyond 350 patients, they need to branch out to another community. The goal is to make treatment more accessible. He explained the challenges one has when actively using substances and trying to recover and receive treatment. Transportation can be a significant barrier to receiving services if someone has a long commute to treatment. Dr. Bill said, “We want to do the best we can to get out to where we’re more convenient to the patients we’re serving.” West Union is an area with such a need for convenience. Jeffery piggybacked that once folks have reached stabilization in treatment, they need to keep the progress going while attending to other responsibilities such as family and work. Long-distance services are a deterrence. Jeffery said, “It also interferes with their ability to give back to the communities they’re in and build a life they can maintain independently.”
At total capacity, Dr. Bill anticipates that Sunrise will employ around 20 – 25 staff with a combination of administration, clinical, and medical. Medical staff will include nurses in the medication room, a nurse practitioner, a medical director, or a program physician. Jeffery is the Clinical Director and will bring on more mental health professionals as needed. She is duly licensed for mental health and independent chemical dependency and currently provides all the mental health services at the center. Everyone served at the center gets a counseling session tied to their medication.
Additionally, the center will offer a partial hospitalization program when more staff are on board. This care is still a level of outpatient care, with the highest intensity of outpatient care provided. The next step of care would be inpatient or residential hospitalization which they do not offer.
Dr. Bill explained that about a year and a half ago, they acquired the partial hospitalization program in a different community that offered supported housing. Sunrise has developed relationships in that community with a certified recovery housing provider. That provider, Compass Point Housing, also operates housing here in Adams County. Jeffery added that the recovery housing requires the monitoring of patients. Plans include even more staff at Sunrise to either stay at recovery houses or, for lower intensity, make supervising visits. Sunrise hopes to hire recovery support staff and start these services in March 2023. They also want to hire a peer recovery support specialist, a nurse practitioner, medication room nurses, clinical counselors, group facilitators, clinicians for partial hospitalization services, case managers, resident recovery staff, and clinical support staff who have a certification for chemical dependency.
Sunrise Treatment Center has contracts with all the Ohio Medicaid providers, accepts many private insurances, and has a reasonable self-pay rate. Jeffery explained that they offer a Lifeline program, so patients won’t be turned away if they lose their insurance. She said, “We have alternative programs focused on maintaining the patient’s stability.”
Jeffery feels fortunate to be a part of the Sunrise team. She said, “Sunrise highly values dignity and respect for all individuals. “We desire to intentionally better the communities we are in.” She relayed that Sunrise expects respect for the patients they serve and the individuals they employ. She said, “It’s a great place to work, and there is a good work-life balance. Our executive leadership takes good care of us, allowing us to take good care of our patients. If we take good care of our patients, they catch a bit of hope and self-value, allowing them to take better care of themselves. It’s an effective culture at Sunrise, our core values, and our ideology. It goes into what we do rather than just something we read on paper.”