Medical Withdrawal Unit
Our voluntary Medical Withdrawal Unit serves women and men age 19 and older who need medical supervision during the withdrawal process. Staff include 24-hour registered nursing care and licensed alcohol and drug counselors, who help clients prepare for treatment, provide case management, and arrange follow-up care. Stays are typically three to five days. While the majority of our clients are withdrawing from alcohol, many are also dependent on on other substances such as methamphetamine, cocaine, synthetic or prescription medications. Services do not require a professional referral or evaluation.
This voluntary program is separately located from the Civil Protective Custody Program.
Someone who seldom drinks but gets drunk at a party can recover in 24 hours and return to work on Monday. A chronic substance user takes much longer to detoxify. In fact, NOT drinking gives this person tremors, an unsteady gait, and potentially seizures.
Withdrawal from the physical impact of drugs or alcohol can take several days and require medically-trained supervision. Our voluntary Medical Withdrawal Unit (MWU) addresses this need in our community and expects to treat more than 600 individuals this year.
MWU is an important first step before committing to treatment. During their time in our medical withdrawal unit, individuals are dealing with physical symptoms of withdrawal and coming to terms with their chemical use while they consider long-term changes in their lives. Through individual counseling, group sessions and educational programs, clients gain insight regarding treatment and support for moving forward.
