Reopened mental health and substance use treatment program in Crystal will support adults in the Twin Cities
Substance use disorders (SUD) are more common than you might think: One in six Americans over age 12 reported experiencing a SUD in 2022.
SUD includes misuse of prescription medication and/or problematic use of alcohol or legal and illegal drugs. It’s a treatable mental condition that affects a person’s brain and behavior. SUD often occurs alongside a mental health diagnosis, such as depression or anxiety.
To serve more people in the Twin Cities, we recently re-opened the intensive outpatient program (IOP) in Crystal, Minn., located at 2960 Winnetka Ave N. The program closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and stayed closed due to staff changes.
“We’re still seeing a lot of fallout from the pandemic,” said Marcie Johnson, MSW, LICSW, manager of behavioral outpatient clinical programs for M Health Fairview. “A lot of people started drinking and using. As we’ve come out of the pandemic, we’ve experienced a rising need for additional SUD and mental health treatment programs.”
M Health Fairview offers intensive outpatient mental health and SUD treatment programs across the Twin Cities area for adults and adolescents with co-occurring mental health and addiction conditions.
“A co-occurring group is designed towards folks who have overlapping concerns regarding their mental health and substance use,” Johnson said. “Because one often contributes to the other, and vice versa, we believe in addressing them together in a comprehensive way.”
The program takes a phased approach to give people the treatment they need. Phase one is the most intensive. In the first phase of treatment, adults meet in a group of eight to 10 for nine hours per week. Everyone has an hour of individual therapy as well. Phase two involves six hours a week of treatment, and phase three is one hour a week. It typically takes five to six months to complete the program. From there, clinicians help people transition to ongoing care so they can maintain and continue to advance the progress they made in the intensive outpatient program.
The groups are facilitated by licensed alcohol and drug counselors who also are licensed at a master's level as a mental health provider. Group members also meet with an addiction medicine provider when they begin the program. The doctor may prescribe medication to help with their addiction and mental health concerns.
"Mental health and substance use disorders rarely exist in isolation—and neither should their treatment,” said Chris Beamish, Mental health and Addiction Services executive for M Health Fairview. “At M Health Fairview, we’re committed to meeting people where they are by offering integrated care that treats the whole person. Our intensive outpatient programs are designed to support individuals with co-occurring conditions so they can heal, rebuild, and thrive—without having to choose between their responsibilities and their recovery."
These outpatient programs allow participants to keep up with their commitments – like work, school, or caring for family – while still receiving intensive treatment.
We offer additional mental health and addiction support outpatient programs in Edina, Burnsville, and Saint Paul. Edina also has a program for people over age 55. We offer adolescent programs in Crystal, Princeton, and Maplewood.
To get more information about mental health and addiction care services from M Health Fairview or for help finding the right program for you, call 1-800-468-3120.
