Mental health, substance abuse services combined

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

It's a state and national trend: combining mental health therapy with substance abuse treatment. Now Larimer County is following suit, with the merger of the Larimer Center for Mental Health and Island Grove Regional Treatment Center.

Until the July 1 merger, Island Grove provided primarily alcohol and drug treatment programs, while LCMH treated patients with mental health issues. That meant that people with co-occurring disorders, meaning both substance abuse and mental health issues, had to deal with two different agencies to get the help they needed. Now, services will be easier to obtain and more efficiently coordinated.

"Many, many of those we already served (for mental health issues) have substance abuse issues as well," said Randy Ratliff, director of LCMH. With the merger, he said, "Services will be a lot more flexible, and we'll be doing a better job for people with co-occurring disorders."

According to LCMH statistics, about 50 percent of individuals with severe mental illness also have a substance use disorder.

For now, clients will see little change. There are no new facilities, and people will go to the same locations as before for services. "We want a thoughtful transition so it's not confusing to people," Ratliff said. The Island Grove name will be dropped at some point, and Ratliff hopes to eventually have one location in Fort Collins for clients with co-occurring disorders.

For the past few years, according to Ratliff, both Island Grove and LCMH have been working to make their employees "co-occurring competent." Many LCMH therapists are in the process of becoming certified in addiction counseling, he noted.

"By making substance abuse services an integral part of what we do at LCMH, we are able to treat all of our consumers holistically - focusing on their comprehensive needs as individuals," Ratliff said.

Island Grove has operated two offices in Larimer County, one on West Mountain Avenue in Fort Collins and the second in Loveland. In fact, Loveland served as a model for the merger, because Island Grove and LCMH have shared a building there for about two years. Both agencies received good feedback about the arrangement, Ratliff said.

Island Grove has its roots in Weld County, and a merger occurred there as well. Island Grove's detoxification and residential treatment center in Greeley, geared to people with substance addictions, is now part of North Range Behavioral Health.

All former employees of Island Grove in Larimer County were brought over to LCMH. With the merger, LCMH now employs 220 people.

Colorado is also on track to combine state programs dealing with substance abuse and mental health issues, Ratliff noted.