Douglas M. Leech establishes fund to support addiction recovery
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – WVU Medicine and the WVU Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry held a grand opening today (March 1) for the new WVU Medicine Center for Hope and Healing, a 29,305-square-foot addiction treatment facility that offers 12 beds for subacute medically managed withdrawal residential care and 30 beds for residential care up to 28 days.
“Addiction in West Virginia continues to plague the state as one of its most serious problems. West Virginia has the highest rate of overdose deaths in the nation, and in many ways is the epicenter of the addiction/opioid epidemic,” Albert L. Wright, Jr., president and CEO of the West Virginia University Health System, said. “The WVU Medicine Center for Hope and Healing meets a major community need that has, to date, only been addressed on a small scale compared to the large scale of affected population.”
The Center works to support adults struggling with substance use disorders through medically managed withdrawal stabilization and residential treatment. WVU Medicine and the WVU Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry already offer a comprehensive menu of outpatient services for people with substance use disorders, and the addition of withdrawal management and 28-day rehabilitation completes the in-house continuum of care for these disorders.
The comprehensive person-centered treatment program offered at the Center includes:
- Detoxification
- Residential treatment
- Medication-assisted treatment
- Family support services
- Individualized treatment plans
- Trauma-informed care
- Mindfulness-based practices
- Specialized programming for recent overdose survivors and pregnant women
“These services allow us to treat the entire patient not just his or her substance use disorder,” James Berry, D.O., director of addiction services, WVU Medicine Chestnut Ridge Center, and interim chair, WVU Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry, said. “We work with our patients to understand their immediate and long-term needs. By integrating treatment and recovery, our patients are able to incorporate change into their lives outside of the treatment setting.”
The facility will serve as a single regional referral point for assessment of patients following discharge from local emergency rooms, inpatient detox units, and other referral sources. It will also accept self-referrals and referrals from community providers.
In addition to celebrating the opening of the Center, officials also celebrated the receipt of a generous gift that has been made to support patient care at the Center for Hope and Healing.
Douglas M. Leech, founder and CEO of Ascension Recovery Services, has established the Center for Hope and Healing Patient Care Fund with a gift of $60,000.
The fund, which will offset the cost of treatment, will benefit patients seeking care at the Center for Hope and Healing.
“The WVU Center for Hope and Healing will provide the highest quality clinical care for those in our state struggling with addiction, regardless of the payer type. An option like this has only been offered in the past out of state to those who have commercial insurance and the ability to cash pay a hefty fee,” Leech said.
“WVU Medicine’s Chestnut Ridge Center helped me find residential treatment when I desperately needed it. When I returned to Morgantown, I received outpatient services at the Chestnut Ridge Center, where they strengthened and supported my early recovery. As I started West Virginia Sober Living and Ascension Recovery Services in Morgantown, WVU Medicine was there to support me, provide guidance and mentorship, as well as partnership on a variety of initiatives. WVU Medicine has always been there for me, and I’m grateful to be able to give back to an organization that helped me and so many others in our state.”
Ascension Recovery Services, located in Morgantown, specializes in addiction recovery and treatment.
To make a gift to the Center for Hope and Healing Patient Care Fund, please visit give.wvu.edu/wvumedicine-rni and refer to fund 2W1371 in the comments box.
For more information about the center or making a gift, please contact Laura McCall, senior director of development for the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, at 304-293-5757 or [email protected].
This gift was made through the WVU Foundation, the non-profit organization that receives and administers private donations on behalf of the University.