WORCESTER—The castle-like, turreted brick building on Grove Street looks nothing like a state-of-the-art rehabilitation facility, but that’s exactly what one wing of it has become, thanks to a $3 million federal grant.
Veterans Inc., which offers veteran services to nearly 5,000 Worcester area residents out of the 1895 Armory building, has just opened a 32-bed inpatient treatment center for substance abuse and mental health rehabilitation.
The Behavioral Health Wing at the Grove Street headquarters is unique in that it serves patients who are struggling with both substance abuse and have a mental health issue for which they have previously sought treatment.
Currently, the facility is open to men only, although Veterans Inc. is working on creating a similar program for women. “Come as you are. We will take you,” says Raymond Carville, government affairs specialist for Veterans Inc. “We are here for veterans.” Founded in 1990, the organization is now the largest provider of veteran services in New England.
The program includes peer to peer mentoring, group therapy, one on one counseling, support for detoxing from substance abuse and cognitive behavioral therapies.
“We are providing wellness activities that are on the vanguard of treatments,” said Denis Leary, executive director of Veterans Inc.
Some of these wellness activities include therapies centered around music and art. Housing assistance and job training are also offered as patients get closer to leaving the program.
Patients cohabitate, with four to six sharing a room. “It’s a congregant setting,” explained Leary. The full cafeteria serves three meals a day and patients are able to stay for up to one year, with all of the services paid for by a third-party health insurer. Unlike other shorter-term programs, the year-long residency is focused on comprehensive treatments and long-term plans.
As Carville pointed out, struggling with a substance addiction on top of PTSD or depression can be crippling.
“Vets represent a disproportionate share of the homeless population and the addicted population,” added Leary.
Carville maintains the services being offered at the Grove Street facility are more important than ever, adding that in 2020 5.2 million veterans experienced behavioral health conditions; half of those with mental illnesses did not receive treatment. He added that 90 percent of veterans who are experiencing substance abuse do not receive treatment. Half of recent veterans do not connect with or know about general veteran services, he explained.
Such services go beyond mental health care and include insurance programs and tuition or loan assistance. With 200,000 people becoming veterans each year, experts argue that’s a staggering number who do not plug into the available offerings.
The Grove Street facility is trying to address these issues one person at a time. Currently the facility is licensed for 32 beds, 26 of which were filled as of a week ago. The remainder are expected to be filled within the next few weeks, said Leary. And by the new year Leary expects to have been approved for 45 beds.
“The need is huge right now for this level of care,” he added. “There’s a lot riding on this for the participants. These are folks who live in the greater Worcester community. These are our neighbors.”
The Grove Street facility’s location is another key element to the program, according to Leary. Centrally located in an urban area, veterans aren’t expected to travel hours from their homes and families to receive comprehensive treatment.
“A veteran can get care right in their own community,” he said.
As patients near the end of their residential treatment program Leary explained that there is a great benefit to them being able to tap into the other services, under the same roof, offered at the Veterans Inc headquarters.
“It’s a one-stop center for everything,” said Leary. “Our philosophy is to hang in there with the veterans if they are having a problem. We’re not just going to eject them. The vets were there for us. We owe them. That’s what our agency is all about.”
Bridget Samburg is a freelance editor, reporter and ghostwriter. She has written for Boston Magazine, The Boston Globe and Yankee Magazine, among other outlets. She can be reached at bsamburg@comcast.net
